I grew up watching Mr. Rogers. He was one of my father figures, and I’m glad he was there for me when my actual dad couldn’t or wouldn’t be. Mr. Rogers taught about make-believe, feelings, and being true to yourself regardless of what others thought. In the clip below, Mr. Rodgers urges you to take action and create something today. Creating something is a core part of your human beingness.

Now, I wouldn’t have made that if I’d just been thinking about it; just pretending about it, it wouldn’t be there:

You can make-believe it happens, or pretend that something’s true.
You can wish or hope or contemplate a thing you’d like to do,
But until you start to do it, you will never see it through
‘Cause the make-believe pretending just won’t do it for you.

You’ve got to do it.
Every little bit, you’ve got to do it, do it, do it, do it
And when you’re through, you can know who did it
‘Cause you did it, you did it, you did it. (For more lyrics to the song, check out The Neighborhood Archive.)

That’s right, and it feels good to do things; no matter how anybody says it is. It feels good to have made something.

Transcript of Clip from “Mr. Rogers’ Neighborhood”

Look at Mr. Rogers’ drawing. It isn’t a masterpiece. It isn’t what most people would consider art, but that’s not the point of his creative act. The point is to make something and enjoy the process of making it. He uses two colors and draws in a simple fashion. You can still tell what everything is. He also reaches a stopping point. The drawing is done and he moves onto the next thing feeling good because he has made something.

Create Something Today

Get out a sheet of paper and a box of crayons, and let yourself create something today. Keep it simple and share it with your social media group — use #penguinate. Then stick it on your fridge and be proud of your creation. If you still need tips on drawing, creativity, or imagination, sign up to follow this blog and join us on Patreon. You can also learn about the seven shapes you need to draw anything on Medium.