The Imagineer

What It’s Like to See Beyond What Others See?

The Shoulders Upon Which We Stand – Part 2

Do you know what “faith” is? It’s being able to live in a world that doesn’t exist so that one day it might. Steve Harvey speaks of this often. You have to have an imagination for creating what doesn’t already exist. One of the greatest examples of using faith (although you’d not associate this example with faith) is Joseph “Joe” Jackson. He saw an image of his boys as great entertainers and it’s this view of them that made them the legends that we all know today.

Visioneers
If you’ve ever visited Disney World, you’ve been impacted by the faith of a team of Walt Disney’s visioneers. They’re the people who dream of ways to create a world that doesn’t exist in their magical theme parks. These people have a gift of thinking of what doesn’t exist and bringing those ideas into reality. Sounds like “faith” doesn’t it? Hoping for something that doesn’t exist and seeing it take shape, form, and coming into existence.

The Imagineer
This next eXtra-man, is an eXtra-woman, my mother. Let’s call her, “The Imagineer.” Like Joseph Jackson who most thought was very harsh and abrasive, exist people who live in a realm that normal people cannot see. They see a different future and a different picture, reality. I can only imagine that when Steven Jobs envisioned the iPod and iPhone, normal people asked why and said it couldn’t be done; they couldn’t see what he was seeing. When you see a world of possibilities, you have to look beyond the world that currently exists.

My mother, Mary Clark, “The Imagineer”, has a gift to see beyond what exists. I often joke that she lives in an imaginary world. While she is not creating digital products like Steve Jobs or legendary entertainers like Joseph “Joe” Jackson, she sees her family through the eyes of her imagination. She sees beyond who we really are and imagines the successful version of who we all can be.

“I am somebody.” – Lula M. Clark

“The Imagineer” dreams of a family filled with people who are “somebodies.” Her sisters remind us that our mother would always say that her children would be “somebody.” We couldn’t live as nobodies. In the words of my website, it’s not good enough to be like everyone else when we were made to be different, somebody.

Many years ago, my grandmother would have each one of us seated around her Sunday School classroom table and say these words, “I am somebody.” These words meant more to my brother and me than most would ever know. It was a family requirement from “The Imagineer.”

My mother couldn’t see average or normal and demanded the best. She hated to see results that reminded her of what ordinary, average, and nothing-special people produce. We had the makings of somebody.

You know what faith is? It’s seeing beyond what already exists and pushes through to see a world that doesn’t exist. While we may not like Joe Jackson’s tactics, we can’t deny his faith and certainly not his results. Who do you have in your life that’s imagining a better world for you? Who’s your imagineer? X-man? No. Extraordinary women. eXtra-women! The Imagineer.

Until next week and another eXtra-man installment, share this with someone who needs to see a better reality than what they’re seeing today. Help them by being their “imagineer.” Thanks for reading.

[note note_color=”#E3EAEE” text_color=”#060A09″]