I tried so hard to hear God. When I finally talked to my pastor about my doubts he said that reading the Bible would help. Reading the Bible made me doubt even more.
Wasn't raised Christian, but had a similar experience. But I definitely believed in God, heaven, etc, because they seemed like facts of life. I just thought there must be more to it.
Anyway, precisely because I took these metaphysics seriously and at face value, and because I wanted to know more, I kept digging. And as any seeker of truth knows: if you keep digging at a lie, you will reach the bottom in short order.
I only had to wait long enough for my youthful incredulousness to fall away. What a waste of time... I couldn't been studying music theory or something...
I clearly remember the moment when I realized that other people (other than weird fundies) were taking it seriously. I'm not sure what I had thought was going on, my best guess is that I thought praying and going to church was just a weird thing we were all supposed to do out of politeness, like not putting our elbows on the table.
I had the same thing when I was younger! In my head, it was like a thing people do just for tradition(or something?) that everyone knows isn't real, but we play along for fun. Like when you knock on wood or wish on a star. Or when adults talk about what "Santa" brought them (and I don't mean the people that genuinely believe in that shit). I dunno I had the concept well developed in my head like it was all some sort of metaphor and then my mind was blown when I learnt people actually think jesus was a real life wizard
As a French, it's not in our culture these "imaginary friends". Kids don't have them (at least I don't know anyone that used to have one), we don't speak about it, we don't have stories and fairy tales about them....
I think it's an American thing. The new movie "IF" is uncanny for me - It's like the girl is batshit insane and I was waiting for a twist with here being in a psychiatric hospital or something.
Not French but francophone so maybe it is an English thing, because I heard so many anecdotes from Anglophone relations about their imaginary friends growing up, and mon doux jesus I tried to have an imaginary friend, but sadly found myself impotent in that regard.
It seems to be a swedish thing, but sweden is loving US/UK culture so maybe we hear about it but doesn't have them.
For what it's worth, I grew up there and never met/heard of anyone having an imaginary friend, but I do remember it from TV. Hmm, maybe a german film? What's about you, germans?
No, I was a lonely nerd so I just had imaginary friends. I think I stopped having a specific imaginary friend when I was about 5 and moved on to playing out larger imaginary scenarios. In high school I got into tabletop RPGs, and today I still play them now and then, and I like to write stories and do other creative activities.
I feel like my imagination has enjoyed a long and varied career, and I look forward to several more decades of day dreaming.
Yes! Everyone was talking about theirs and I just made up one but felt like a fraud. I literally had to take a real animal toy of mine to base my "imaginary friend" on.
After playing Pokemon Mystery Dungeon Rescue Team Red for the first time and getting a Cubone from the test, I always imagined a Cubone going with me to school and keeping me company. Never told anyone about it, though
No, but I definitely had the thought that, "Wow, it'd be really cool if I could imagine something that strongly like everybody else. I want a pet blue eyes ultimate dragon"
Not really. It's just my parents had a hard time when I was born (russian 90s + medical issues) and I lacked contact with them working long irregular shifts. When I was failing in something or just sad, it was easier to imagine I'm of alien origin and don't belong there, than to talk this out with them. It's probably not on them, and far from the worst stories other lemmings can tell, but it did hurt.