Sully - The Dream Catcher
Not long ago my friends four year old daughter, Lilly, started to have bad nightmares. So much so she did not want to go to bed. Her fast thinking father, Dan, rushed out and brought Sully the dream catching monster from the film Monsters Inc, one of Lilly’s favourite films. Dan explained how Sully would catch her nightmares before she had them and she would have no more bad dreams just happy ones. To all our amazement from that night on, as long as Sully is there, she never has bad dreams.
This got me thinking. If a blue cuddly monster can cause a child to believe so strongly that they are not going to have nightmares that they don’t, surly anything we believe strongly enough can be true.
The key to understanding this as a possibility is that no one see’s the real world, just their interpretation of the world based on their own values, past experiences and beliefs. If a bald headed, tattooed man walked into the room in biker kit, people would respond very differently. For example, if someone had been mugged by a man that matched that description, they are going to treat the man differently than someone who has a best friend that looks like that. We assess the world on what we have experienced before, what we think we know and believe.
This opens the floor to debate as to what is actually true and what is not. In fact, no one can ever say something is absolutely right, only their take on it from their past experiences, values and beliefs. Of course, there are something’s that are more likely to be common knowledge as we have all experienced them, be it in a slightly different way. For example too much chocolate will make you fat!
The question then has to be asked, if we personally believe something to be true and we get feedback confirming this (as we have looked for it), then surly it’s now true. Magic football socks for example. Many people have a pair of luck socks they wear under the football socks. Do we really believe they are lucky/magic or have we worn them enough times when the team has won to believe they bring luck?
The question I would like to ask is don’t we all need a Sully? Not just for dream catching but one that can allow us all to believe again in what we can be, achieve and do if only we believe. Can Sully be the creator of belief in adulthood?
