Before we learn language, we compute in images. Images and their meanings, run so deep that we almost take it for granted.
I believe that God designed our understanding to run further than individual words could ever carry us- we have greater access to His heart through imagery and story (look at the Bible- a collection of stories and our Savior who constantly spoke in metaphor). It's hard to contain God to the "watery clasp" of words, but we get a chance to have a richer look at Him and life through the mediums of story and imagery. It's a hard concept to define but easy to see. We are more inclined to be moved by a story or an image than we will a systematic ordering of facts.
I get to see this take place in an untainted way as my son naturally wants to watch The Hobbit and talks incessantly about slaying dragons; or today as we talk about Jesus in the desert and he has a strong and negative reaction towards a snake (THE snake). These are things that I have not really taught him, it's just God's law written upon his heart, and I get the privilege of protecting and amplifying that by what we choose to talk about and do every day.
That is the beauty and mystery of it all-something I could explore for the rest of my life and still find myself eagerly curious about.