Thursday Th(ink)s -January 8, 2026

So Many Ideas; So Little Lifetime

I recently gave my five-year-old granddaughter, yes, the one that can’t quite yet read or write yet, a diary. You know, the little pink kind that has a lock with a key that has probably already been lost. The reason I gave it to her is because I see myself in her. I see her desire for the secret things. I see her want to hide her ideas away, even if I have to spell them out for her first, and she rewrites them. She’s that kid. The one that may grow up to be a writer. The one who will struggle with finding contentment in the harsh light of realism. This girl loves all things paper and pencil. 

I have kept an “idea” notebook for as long as I can remember—I have dozens of them. They are in trunks, in random boxes that also house research for plays I thought I’d write, they are stacked on my desk in front of me right now. Some ideas are so audacious they haven’t even made it into a notebook. They have found a permanent home on a sticky note, pasted on the wall beside my desk. Yes, I’m also the girl who loves all things paper and pencil and the secrets that are revealed by simply using the 26 letters of the alphabet. Now, that’s real magic! 

Recently, I’ve been hesitant to open these notebooks. Reviewing my idea history gives me anxiety. I’ll never, in my lifetime, make all these ideas live! Most will die with me. I’m a weak vessel and, for that… I’m sorry. I sometimes wish I didn’t have this crazy notion that ideas have souls. My sleep would be much deeper. It’s not just that I’m afraid the ideas won’t get done. It’s that I’m afraid they’ll outlive me without ever knowing I loved them. Today I opened one notebook and closed it immediately without reading past the first page. It felt like mercy. I escaped the labyrinth of regret. 

generated by Bing

Of course, not ALL ideas are brilliant. Some try too hard. Some are just…awkward, like that haircut you thought was a good idea in 1987. Nope. Awkward. Unfortunately, today I saw a kid who was sporting that “bad idea” haircut which proves that the wheel of unfortunate ideas never stops rolling. When it comes to haircuts there truly is nothing new under the sun.

Those ideas that try too hard? Let them go. Done. Sometimes, other people’s ideas try to worm their way into your idea notebook. Nope. They don’t have a place. Sure, you can let them be heard but understand that they are not yours. Your ideas will bring you joy. Others’ ideas? They will bring anxiety. Some ideas arrive wearing religious language. Others sound practical. Most of them are just loud. Plug your ears; you don’t have to listen. 

Let the “you should”’s get buried in someone else’s grave. You SHOULD do what you want with your own ideas. You SHOULD not even open every single notebook if it’s too much. You SHOULD let new ideas spring to life in this springtime of your senior years. Maybe it’s a story, maybe it’s a garden, maybe it’s just painting rocks and calling it art. Who cares? You’re old enough to know that the best ideas are the ones that bring satisfaction and make you feel whole.

We’re all aging, even the baby, but entering the government’s classification of “the aged” forces a pause. It makes you think: How will I use the time I have left? Younger me hoarded ideas like currency. Older me spends them carefully. Not because they’re scarce—but because time is precious. My ideas, my joy, my time—I want to use them wisely and boldly. Aging is not the narrowing of creativity but its freedom. I finally get to choose what stays.

So, open a notebook, or don’t. Write something down, or don’t. The point is this: God gave you ideas, and he gave you years to use them, both past and present. Be brave. Be stubborn. Be messy. Be joyful.

Oh oh. The granddaughter who received the diary? Her mother just texted me. “Mum! I have an idea for a children’s book and in my imagination, it already has 75 sequels. Let’s do it!” And she wrote down her idea for me to read. Shoot. Her idea is so solid. I shouldn’t have read it. 

Big Brains:

"Wit is the sudden marriage of ideas which, before their union, were not perceived to have any relation." Mark Twain

Old Souls:

"Men of lofty genius sometimes accomplish the most when they work least, for their minds are occupied with their ideas and the perfection of their conceptions, to which they afterwards give form." Leonardo da Vinci

The Ancient of Days: "Commit your work to the Lord, and your plans will be established." Proverbs 16:3 ESV

Norma Jean: Your ideas, your joy, your time--use them boldly. Aging is the springtime for creativity.

Thursday Chat: Give yourself time today, this beautiful Thursday, to give yourself the gift of ideas. Unwrap them slowly. Hold them. Wonder about them. And then decide if it’s an idea to keep or to regift.