Henning Mankell

"To grow up is to wonder about things; to be grown up is to slowly forget the things you wondered about as a child."

Henning Mankell

Swedish Novelist

1948 - 

I watch the three-year-old child that my wife and I are raising and I am amazed at the creative powers of her mind to imagine worlds that I cannot see.  To invent stories and stories within stories.  What happens to us as we grow up and take on the cloaks of the adult world?  Where does our inventiveness go?  What worlds of the imagination have we forgotten?

What do you do to keep your mind young?  Do you play with children?  Do you enter their worlds?  Or does the path you walk become narrower with each passing day?  Do you still think as a child or have you given up childish things?  Are you young at heart?  Or are the arteries of your imagination clogged?

I recently finished Mankell's excellent novel, The Man From Beijing.  Here is a video of Henning Mankell discussing the novel at Strand Bookstore.

Leo Buscaglia

"Nine times out of ten, when you extend your arms to someone, they will step in, because basically they need precisely what you need."

— Leo Buscaglia

American Author/Motivational Speaker

1924 - 1998

For the last twenty plus years, I have been teaching people the healing power of touching and hugging.  While I have encountered people who don't like to hug, I have found a deep desire on the part of most people for the healing that a strong hug will bring.  Here in the United States, hugging is not encouraged except in some churches.  Hugging is avoided in the world of business and education.  Some people view it as sexual harassment.  One of few places where people still are allowed to hug is at funerals.  We instinctively know that words are not enough.  What we want to say can only be said with a hug.

As writers and artists, we often work in isolation and yet we have this desire and need for human touch.  We should surround ourselves with supportive friends with whom we can cry  and who will give us a hug when we need it the most.  Healthy friendships are a necessary part of the creative process.

There is a true story that circulates on the internet of two baby twins who were born premature.  The hospital personnel put the babies in separate incubators per their policy and procedures.  One baby was healthy and thriving.  The other grew weaker.  A nurse decided to put the babies in the same incubator and a surprising thing happened.  The stronger baby put her arm around the weaker one and the weaker baby grew stronger and healthier.

As creative leaders, we need to take care of our own emotional and mental heath so we have the strength to create more works of art.  Be sure to give your friends and family a hug each and every day.