Who opened the bag?
Last week I had a camp chair set in a beautiful cedar and fir forest — with some cottonwood trees weaving a golden hue through the greenery. A great place to read and think. When I returned after a few minutes away I saw a leaf had dropped on the chair. I went to brush it off, and discovered it wasn't a leaf. It was a potato chip — a runaway snack.
From that bit of inspiration came this haiku:
Potato chip leaves —
Autumn crunching underfoot —
Who opened the bag?
Creativity is recognizing the moment for what it is — or can be. The Swiss engineer who invented Velcro had gone for a walk with his dog in the woods. When he returned he noticed burrs from the burdock plant were stuck to his pants — and his dog's fur. Being curious, recognizing the moment, he wondered why.
Out came the microscope so he could study these peculiar seed pods. Fourteen years later in 1955 his attempt to recreate the hook system of the burr — and find the right material to bond with it — brought about a new product, Velcro. Its name derives from the French words, velours — velvet, and crochet — hook.
At the Spokane Interstate Fair in September, Terry and I stopped to watch the tractor pull. The announcer told the intriguing story of John Deere — a blacksmith — and his steel plow. Moving from Vermont to Illinois, Deere was constantly repairing the wood and cast-iron plows that worked well in the east's sandy soil, but couldn't handle the sticky black prairie soil — which clung to the plow.
When Deere saw a broken steel sawmill blade he recognized its possibility. He forged it — shaping it over a log — into a highly successful plow that could shed the heavy clay soil. He sold his first one in 1838, and by 1857 he was selling 10,000.
Creativity always tells a story. Someone saw something, did something, thought something. From the simple to the complex — in a flash, or through years of effort — creativity is a fruit of being made in the image of God. My belief — from what I learn in the Bible — is creativity is part of God's very nature. Something He loves to do, and is always doing.
What it must have been like to envision the earth — and all the universe — and bring it into being. It's been spectacular recently to see the bright full moon with Jupiter's sparkle keeping it company in the night sky.And here I am, excited over the poetic possibility in a potato chip!Ridiculously puny … but not really.
It is genius for God to place the gift of creativity inside His highest creation, humankind — for His enjoyment and ours. Ultimately, creativity done God's way is a joyous endeavor — even with its toil and frustrations — given to draw me to the One who is my Creator.
My haiku asks, “Who opened the bag?” There is no doubt.