A Musical Journey into Imagination
Summary: Written in the style of a kids' book/audiobook. Two friends named Brenda and Garrett go on a fantastic journey with Dreamfinder and Figment and learn that a lot of things require the use of imagination when they have trouble with a school assignment about creativity.
Fake voice cast:
Ron Schneider as Dreamfinder
Corey Burton as Figment
Tara Strong as Brenda
Debi Derryberry as Garrett
Susan Blu as the narrator
Disclaimer: I do not own Journey into Imagination. It belongs to do Disney. I only own my original characters Brenda and Garrett.
Have you ever had an amazing experience that you would never forget? A daydream that seemed so real, you could have sworn it actually happened. An 8-year-old, brown-haired, blue eyed girl named Brenda and her friend, a black-haired, green eyed boy named Garrett, had that kind of experience once. Last week, they told me the whole story and I was given permission by them and their parents to share it. Whether you believe it is another matter entirely.
It all started on a Saturday afternoon when Garrett had come over to Brenda's house to work on a school project together. The assignment was to write about a job that might require more creativity than one might think. It was not as easy as they thought it would be. The two were both wearing blue jeans, but Brenda was wearing a red t-shirt, white socks, and red and white striped sneakers while Garrett was wearing a dark green t-shirt, black socks, and gray sneakers.
As they sat on the living room sofa, Brenda sighed sadly. "I wish there was someone who could help us. This is much harder than I thought it would be."
"Yeah. Maybe we should take a break and that might help." Garrett agreed.
The two put away their school supplies and then began to daydream, not realizing that Brenda's wish was about to come true. When the two friends looked around, they noticed that they were on a huge airship and flying through a bright blue sky. The ship was made of metal pipes and gages; it also had a small cooking pot in the back and a huge blue balloon on the top. At the back of the ship was a red tartan bag attached to a vacuum cleaner-styled hose, which was sucking blue sparkly things. At the front of the ship was a set of controls and an ornate looking chair.
Brenda gasped when she and Garrett noticed that there was someone sitting at the controls. More specifically, a red-haired, blue-eyed, man who had pale skin and a beard was sitting there. He was wearing a blue suit, a red vest, white socks, black shoes, white gloves, a plaid scarf, and a black top hat with goggles on it. He was singing a song to himself while steering this aircraft.
Imagination, imagination
A dream can be a dream come true
With just that spark in me and you
"Who is he?" Garrett whispered.
"I don't know." Brenda shrugged.
The man didn't seem to notice them at first and continued singing. In truth, he had actually noticed them and didn't mind the company; he just wasn't acknowledging that yet.
Imagination, imagination
A dream can be a dream come true
With just one spark in me and you.
One little spark of inspiration
Is at the heart of all creation
Right at the start of everything that's new
One little spark lights up for you
At that moment, this strange man addressed his two unexpected passengers. "Oh, hello there! So glad you could come along. I am the Dreamfinder."
Music notes appeared and were sucked into the red bag, much to the shock of the two children.
Dreamfinder simply laughed a little at this sight. "Musical notes! What delightful melodies those will make. I love these flights of fancy. Searching the universe for sounds, colors, ideas, anything that sparks the imagination." Then he saw a sunbeam briefly appear and also get sucked into the bag. "A sunbeam! That's a good one. Everything I collect can inspire amazing and marvelous new ideas, and you never know what kind of figment you may come up with. Ho, ho, here's my favorite." He then started singing again and the ingredients he mentioned in his song briefly appeared.
Two tiny wings, eyes big and yellow
Horns of a steer, but a lovable fellow
From head to tail, he's royal purple pigment
And then, voila! You've got a figment
"A figment of imagination." Dreamfinder switched back to speaking once more.
Figment, a purple dragon with a pink midsection, yellow eyes, orange horns and back spikes, and small orange wings rose out of the small cooking pot and was laughing. "Dreamfinder, I'm just right!" He declared.
"Ah, ah, ah. Not quite." Dreamfinder said to the excitable creature.
"Huh?" Figment looked confused for only a second as he asked this question.
"I'll throw in a dash of childish delight!" Dreamfinder tossed in that last intangible ingredient, which resulted in Figment sparkling and laughing again briefly. Next, the Dreamfinder turned his creation's attention to Brenda and Garrett, who were still looking at them in awe. "Look Figment, some new friends have joined us."
"Can they imagine too?" Figment asked.
Brenda wanted to say no but didn't get a chance to answer. She didn't think she had a very good imagination if she did have one at all.
"Of course! Imagination is something that belongs to all of us." Dreamfinder answered, sounding 100% sure of this.
"You mean everyone can think up new things!" Figment said in amazement.
"That's right, Figment, and every sparkling idea can lead to even more." Dreamfinder then briefly started singing again.
So many times, we're stumbling in the dark
And then, eureka! What a spark!
Lightning had flashed a little while this occurred, startling Garrett enough for him to grab Brenda.
"How are we going to use lightning?" Figment asked out of curiosity.
"We can combine it with ghostly shivers on a stormy night and turn them into a tale of fright." Dreamfinder answered before briefly laughing in a way that made him sound like a cartoon supervillain.
Figment then spotted something else. "Oh, look, look, a rainbow! I'll use that to paint with!" He declared as it was vacuumed into the bag.
"Now you've got it." Dreamfinder said, smiling like a father who was proud of his child for accomplishing something great.
Figment then excitedly continued to list random things that appeared and were being vacuumed up as Brenda and Garrett continued to stare. "Wow, wow! Numbers, letters, papers for writing, costumes make-up, stages for lighting, tear drops, laughter!"
"What about science?" Dreamfinder wanted to know.
"Science? We'll need electron beams and crystal prisms, gyroscopes and magnetisms, holograms in three dimensions" Figment answered before being interrupted.
"Hold on, Figment." Dreamfinder told him.
"What?" The dragon asked.
Dreamfinder pointed to a gauge at the back of the ship. "The idea bag is full."
"It is? Let's start making new things!" Figment was finding it very hard to be patient right now.
"Now, wait a minute. First, we must store these ideas with the others in the Dream Port." Dreamfinder explained.
"Are we almost there?" Figment asked.
"Oh, the Dream Port is never far away when you use your imagination." Dreamfinder assured him.
"Come on everybody! Let's go!" Figment shouted excitedly.
Dreamfinder started singing another verse of his song at that moment.
We all have sparks, imaginations
That's how our minds create creations
Right at the start of everything that's new
One little spark lights up for you
"Oh boy!" Figment said before joining his creator and friend to sing the chorus.
Imagination, imagination
A dream can be a dream come true
With just one spark in me and you
At that moment, Brenda and Garrett found that they were no longer on the ship. They were now walking on foot through the Dream Port which had many, many unusual things in it. There was a machine called the Imaginometer that was sorting through the ideas to store them away until they could be used, a 4-spouted teapot on the ceiling which was filling 4 cups of tea at once, a chest labeled "Fog Bank", a literal brainstorm, filing cabinets filled with various sounds, a bird cage full of music notes that sounded a lot like songbirds, a chest full of applauding mannequin hands, and another chest labeled "Deep Thoughts". Figment was shoveling the collected ideas into the Imaginometer, not minding having to do what looked like a difficult job. There was also a barrel of laughs and too many other things to count. A scent of flowers filled the air and the two children knew that wherever they were going next would be a very pleasant place to visit.
Brenda and Garrett found themselves in the Art realm and the first thing they saw was Dreamfinder, wearing a smock and beret, and painting a mural of various animals and plants on the wall with a gigantic paint brush. As he completed this task, he was dipping it into things like "sun rays", "molten lava", and "gemstones" from a huge color palette while singing once again.
Mix red and gold from autumn flowers
Purple and blue from twilight hours
Green summer hills and rainbows play a part
A painter's brush, a work of art
"That is beautiful." Brenda whispered as she and Garrett continued on through an area that looked like it was made out of white paper creations with color on some but not all of them. There was also a carousel of origami animals running on one side of their path.
"Yeah. There's Figment over there!" Garrett whispered back, pointing to the other side.
Figment was wearing a black beret and pouring rainbows from a pot to color the still white sections of the area. He didn't need to say anything; the look on his face indicated that he was having fun.
Brenda had a feeling that this pleasantness would not last long though. As she and Garrett continued on, they found themselves in the Literature realm. It was dark with only a little bit of light to see their path and the two friends were now coming up to a volcano which had words, lava, and smoke erupting from it. At the bottom of the volcano was a keyboard for a computer and Dreamfinder was dressed in a white outfit and typing various words, while listing the ingredients that made up a good horror story.
One chilling word like shriek or killer
Can spark the mind to start a thriller
Add some more sparks like dagger, blood, and gory
And then, a mystery story
Garrett found himself clinging to Brenda as they passed Figment playing with alphabet blocks to turn a shadow of a cat on a full moon into a shadow of a bat by switching the first letter of the word. Then they saw words doing what they said such as the word "avalanche" falling towards them or a genie forming from the word "genie". Fortunately, they got out of the way in time and had soon passed Figment making a shadow puppet of the word "shadow". They could hear laughter and other sounds from various creatures in giant books that they had come across. The books had titles such as "ogres", "vampires", "trolls", and other fantasy creatures/beings. A raven was cawing loudly, and Figment went around to occasionally hold the books shut to keep the things contained within from escaping.
"I don't like this. I think we should stop imagining scary stuff." Brenda decided.
"Me too." Garrett immediately agreed.
Their wish was granted, and Brenda and Garrett immediately found themselves walking in the backstage area of a theater. There were posters labeled with and depicting things like dance, music, laughs, tears, applause and song. The children soon came to a dressing room where Figment was trying on various costumes and masks in front of a mirror on a makeup table. As he was doing this, he was singing as was a currently unseen Dreamfinder.
Some happy songs, some snappy dances
Costumes and sets, spoofs and romances
With laughs and tears and footlights all a-glow
The sparks ignite a brand-new show!
At that moment, Brenda and Garrett passed a sign that actually said "A Brand-New Show" before coming into the main auditorium. Dreamfinder was now dressed as an orchestra conductor, but he wasn't conducting musicians. Instead, he was conducting laser lights as they formed into different shapes such as a hat and cane, masks, and an owl in flight. Figment appeared in an astronaut costume, putting out his thumb as though he was trying to hitchhike. Brenda and Garrett were wondering what they would see next as they passed him.
Now, the two children had come to the Science realm as they once again heard Dreamfinder ask "What about science?", with the last word being repeated multiple times. They were in a gigantic observatory with what looked like various pieces of equipment, including lenses of microscopes and telescopes where Figment occasionally appeared in view, doing things like running in mid-air or putting his face close to the lenses. Behind a giant projecting machine, Dreamfinder stood, wearing a lab coat and a top hat that looked much different than the previous one that he had worn in that it was white instead of black.
"Technology like a newfound potion allows us to marvel at mysteries of motion" Dreamfinder said before turning the dial to start projecting various short films. The first was of water that had microscopic organisms living in it. "Water dances where visions begin. Science reveals a life within."
Brenda and Garrett looked in awe as the film was switched to one that was a closeup of crystals that made up a snowflake.
"I'll wind this dial and time escapes. Watch minerals change to crystal shapes." Dreamfinder said before switching to a time lapse film that showed snow melting and flowers growing. "Let's look at nature at this speed. From germination then back to seed."
Brenda and Garrett couldn't help but say "Whoa!" as those films played and then finally footage of what seemed to be fireworks going off in the night sky was shown.
"Skyrockets soar towards outer space. Imagine yourself in an infinite place." Dreamfinder said.
Walking forward, Brenda and Garrett saw that they were in a room that had several signs shapes like arrows on the walls. The signs said things like "Worlds Beyond", "The known and Unknown", "Destiny", and "Dreams, and were all pointing in different directions. There were also film strips on the walls like what one might see in a film or television studio.
It wasn't long before Brenda and Garrett saw Dreamfinder and Figment once more. This time, Dreamfinder was dressed as fortune teller and looking in a crystal ball. Figment was also looking in said crystal ball albeit using a magnifying glass to do so.
"Oh, there are so many places to dream about." Figment said in awe.
"We can visit worlds that were, that could be, and those of fantasy and reality." Dreamfinder replied.
"What's next, Dreamfinder?" Figment asked his creator, eager to find out the answer.
"Why, imagination can take us over the rainbow and to worlds beyond." Dreamfinder said to the purple dragon.
"Boy, I wish I could be an astronaut! I bet I can use imagination to discover all kinds of new things." Figment declared.
"Of course. It's your key to unlock the hidden wonders of our world." Dreamfinder informed him. It was clear that he was addressing Brenda and Garett as well.
Taking Garrett's hand, Brenda walked with him once more, this time into a realm based on film as a camera flash briefly appeared as though either Dreamfinder or Figment had taken a picture of them. Figment, now in a yellow shirt with red on the sleeves and collar and his name printed on the front, was standing in the middle of the room on what looked like a rolled-up film reel. Around the purple dragon were screens showing him in various roles such as a tap dancer, a superhero in flight, a weightlifter, a scientist mixing up various chemicals, a mountain climber, a cowboy riding a rocking horse, a sailor at the wheel of an aquatic ship, and a scuba diver sitting on a treasure chest at the bottom of the ocean. All these Figments were singing the song that he and Dreamfinder had previously sung.
We all have sparks, imaginations
That's how our minds create creations
And they can make our wildest dreams come true
Those little sparks in me and you
Imagination, imagination
A dream can be a dream come true
With just one spark in me and you
Brenda and Garrett walked a little further as the Figments continued to sing and they saw Dreamfinder once more. This time, he was dressed as movie director and sitting behind a camera. It seemed that a picture had indeed been taken of the two kids and they saw it above them.
"And what about you folks? Imagination is something that belongs to all of us. Figment and I have certainly enjoyed our journey into imagination with you." Dreamfinder said to them. "We wish you well in completing your assignment."
"How did he know about that?" Brenda asked.
Before she could get her answer, she found herself back in the living room with Garrett and they saw the picture of the two of them on the coffee table. Garrett picked up the picture and a note that was next to it.
"Did we just daydream that whole thing?" Brenda was slowly getting over her shock as she said this.
"I don't think so." Garrett said before he read the note aloud.
The note said "Dear Brenda and Garrett, we hope your own sparks of inspiration can help you with whatever goals you wish to accomplish next. We can't say if we'll ever see you again, but we will always be around as long as there is imagination left in the world. You can achieve any dream that you want to if you believe you can and work hard to do it. Keep this photo as a memento of our journey and don't forget that imagination is more than just playing pretend and making media. Farewell for now-Dreamfinder and Figment"
The handwriting did not look anything like that of Brenda's parents or anyone else that she or Garrett knew. So perhaps, maybe, this journey wasn't just a daydream. Who could say for sure though?
"Well, at least I know I do have an imagination after all." Brenda commented, ready to attempt their school project.
The two friends did choose a good topic for their paper and were able to complete it on time, having opted to write about how science equipment could not have existed without someone imagining it, even mentioning a few well-known scientists and what had inspired them. Yes, they did get an A before you ask.
I wasn't sure whether to believe Brenda and Garrett when they first told me about their journey. I decided to give them the benefit of the doubt though. If that adventure did somehow really happen, I hope to meet Dreamfinder and Figment too someday.