Jules de Gaultier stated, "Imagination is the only weapon in the war against reality." I think the "war against reality" is the process of aging and imagination is our naiveté that shields us from the frightening world. By imagining that situations will never be uncomfortable; girls will never experience heartbreak; men will always have jobs to support their families; and people will never become sick, we are setting our selves up for a slap in the face when, inevitably, we are forced to notice how the real world works.
             Disillusionment is the acceptance of truth and the understanding or reality. To be disillusioned, one becomes disappointed when his or her opinion or belief is found out to be false. Usually an act forces them to realize the truth when they probably would rather continue in their own beliefs.
             Santa Clause, for instance, is precisely an illusion. As great and magical it is for a child to believe in the jolly, fat man with a snow white beard sliding down their chimney on Christmas to leave the "good" kids presents, there comes a time when kids learn that Santa is only a spirit; a story told them by the same parents that actually provided the gifts. The naiveté of a child who believes this myth is also accompanied by the delight that believing in the myth brings. At some time, each child comes to the reality that there is no Santa Clause, there is only the love of the parents who were perpetuating the myth in order to increase the quality of their child's young life. To find the myth shattered is like bursting the bubble, yet, to replace it with the understanding of the motivation is a comfort and there is joy in learning that something was done only to make one's life better.
             My naiveté in the awesome act of driving a car was somewhat like my belief in Santa. I felt confident that the task was easy, something I had the ability to do, and something...