The Child In Us.
I watched one of my favourite films again the other day. It is a much underrated British movie called, ‘Paperhouse’ and it was made in the eighties.
It is the sort of story that is really easy to get into; it sounds a little bit silly, but it actually comes across as being very believable. Anna is a girl of around twelve who loves to draw. When she gets Meningitis she discovers that her pictures actually become the backdrop to her dreams; whatever she draws becomes a sort of reality, hence the ‘paper house’ of the title.
I love films like this because they are so imaginative. Wouldn’t it be brilliant if your drawings could come to life? When I was a child I spent hours with a pencil and paper. If my pictures had become real then it would have been the most magical thing that could ever have happened.
This sort of movie isn’t just good because it has an interesting story; the best thing about it is that it reminds you of how it was to be a child. In the young and innocent, there are no limits on the imagination. If we want to believe in something then we can. We do not need to concern ourselves with such things as whether or not it will fit in with the rest of society.
The joy and freedom of being a child is something that we should all try to remember now and again. It is all too easy for us to get caught up with mundane, everyday things. We forget what a wondrous place our world is and that our minds are free to go wherever we want. The only limit that we have on our imagination is the one that we ourselves have put into place.
Before I go, the ski chalets bookings for our annual winter trip have been sorted out. I need part of the payment by this weekend.