
To anybody else it is just a broken fence post. It is just a broken tea cup. It is just an earring without its pair or an extra terracotta pot. We throw away these items; toss them aside because we believe they have lost their value, all the while failing to see the true magic and beauty behind them.
When we were children we could make anything what we needed it to be. Boxes were houses or ships. Backyards became kitchens. Markers became light sabers. Swings became a rocket and dragons. We did not just see items for what they were originally designed. Make-believe and playing pretend gave us a magic that many have lost when leaving childhood.
My mother is one of a rare few who can still find the magic and use of items normally tossed aside. Her handmade business, Seeds of Inspiration, makes cat toys using recycled denim from old jeans. Recently on etsy, I came across a bird feeder made out of glass salsa bottle. Trash for Teaching re-imagines items cast away in bulk and doomed to landfills and uses them to help in teaching within schools and communities.
The trick is to return to that child-like outlook of the world, where anything can be anything else. Put away our adult eyes for just a while and embrace the magic and gift of seeing more to everyday items then their assigned purpose or value. You’ll be amazed at what you can find. The possibilities are endless.