American "creators" can often be the poster boys and girls for the creativity of a generation. With multi-media platforms and brands such as Youtube taking off among the youth, creativity may seem..dead. Feeding dead trends and annihilating dead horses has, seemingly, become a cultural norm. Yet- without the noise, without the constant buzzing of "challenges" or Instagram photos in craft stores, creativity is found waiting in abundance among the silence.

What is creativity? How do we define the capacity of the human mind; can we label a beat copied over centuries in a new remix "creative?" Inherently, humans enjoy the act of mimicking to blend with one's social group. Creativity has always been about removal from the social norm or brilliant ideas. Creative thinking is innovation-- the ability to realize nothing, nothing, is truly important yet going out and solving world problems or creating art anyway. 

No composer in history was forced, at gunpoint, to craft a symphony. I myself am not threatened in order to write fanatical stories or theories of the universe. Artists, no matter what form, cannot be truly forced. The pressure of expectation and consequence may cripple our ability to craft truthful, honest work that reflects the soul as much as our objectives and themes. Art cannot be funneled from our hearts. It must emerge in a bloody, tearful labor of love and sometimes rage, anger, grief or the most innocent joy. Creative thinking is our human way of self-expression. 

It is in my personal opinion that schools should terminate the idea of a creative thinking class. children cannot learn what is unteachable; cannot learn their very nature in a class. How can we expect a teacher to forcefully rip out abstract though as if it were a brain tumor hiding in the back of their skulls? What children need is a time for play, for socialization. As we learn and grow as people only then can we grasp previously unheard of ideas or inventions. There is no formula for thought. No teacher or product or powerpoint that can whip up a Picasso or Bach to be shipped out to end world hunger. 

Controlled environments take our creativity and squash it akin to a roach. So why then, do the youth of today need a class on living? On forming their own thoughts and solutions? The "miracle gro" of advancement of the mind is resources for learning. Why then do students need a new class instead of a well-funded Fine Arts program? Snipping leaves off of flowers cannot force growth-- too much light makes the baby go blind.