At what point does creativity become unimportant in adult development?
Our last son anticipated his last Cub Scout Pinewood Derby, and my husband and I were not heartbroken to see the end of that era. Mark, on the other hand, along with the other little Scouts who had carved, sanded, and painted their rectangular blocks of pinewood, arrived at the race just as excited, proud, and hopeful as the rest of our boys once did. Much to his dismay, however, when he placed his car on the official scale, it weighed too much.
Our family huddled. Together, we decided the only thing to be done at that point was to shave off chunks of wood, one cruel slice at a time. Watching his car being whittled down, Mark simply remarked, resignedly, “I should have just made a motorcycle," We all chortled, surprised and delighted by his good humor and good nature. He was neither overwhelmed by disappointment nor overcome by failure. For better or worse, this was simply a creative experience.
