Although it may seem silly to engage in meaningless questions that have nothing to do with reality, the answer will surprise you.
As someone who spends a lot of time in his mind visualizing abstract concepts into images that may be able to communicate a feeling, I can tell you that imaginary creatures are vastly important. I believe that the imagination is one of the most powerful tools that we have at our disposal. The only limitation of possibilities in your imagination are set by your interpretation of the world and what you believe is possible.
In a rational, grounded in reality mind the idea that a mermaid could feel passion is absurd. Mermaids simply don’t exist, what would be the point in engaging in such childish behavior?
The brain is made up of over 100 billion nerve cells with each brain cell connected to around 10,000 other cells, which equals around 1000 trillion connections in your brain. The connections that you make up in your brain are based on habitual thoughts. Some of these connections get used over and over and become very healthy while other connections atrophy and die off. It’s all very fascinating stuff.
The point is that your imagination is where you engage in divergent thinking. Divergent thinking is a thought process or method used to generate creative ideas by exploring many possible solutions. for example, look at some normal run of the mill every day item that is around you. Now, see how many other uses you could have for that item that have nothing to do with its actual use. In two minutes how many uses did you find? A lot or a little? Did you get stuck?
Psychologists have found that a high IQ alone does not guarantee creativity. Instead, personality traits that promote divergent thinking are more important. Divergent thinking is found among people with personality traits such as nonconformity, curiosity, willingness to take risks, and persistence… Basically every three year old I have ever known.
I think at some point we learn to conform and because mermaids are not real, they can’t feel passion. We have been told they are not real because no one has ever seen them, or there is no evidence of them. Yet, the word mermaid is in our vocabulary, it is something that conjures an image in your mind and it is as real as your imagination.
I think, there is so much power in visualizing and imagining possibilities that may seem like they are not possible. Even if it is simply imagining what it would feel like if a mermaid was describing what her and her people are passionate about.
Some people believe that they will never succeed at something simply because they don’t think it’s possible… Imagine what would happen if they used their imaginations to dream and visualize themselves succeeding… They would be unstoppable.
