Games of the Imagination

I think that allowing a child to use their very own imagination is very critical in their development. Alone, a broom becomes a horse. Pots and pans with wooden spoons becomes a set of drums. A very large cardboard box and a box of crayons becomes a playhouse. And did you know that Tinker Toys can be two-way radio? A big can of blocks will stir the blandest of imaginations. Lincoln Logs and Erector Sets were the mothers of invention for kids from 5 and up. Lego’s are still really great creative inspiration, though they did not have them when I would have been of age to play with them.

Growing up with my siblings and cousins there was always something to do. There were games that only required a playmate or two. We played hide and seek up and down the block until dark. Sidewalk skating, hopscotch, jumping rope and tag were favorites. We could play at the park a block away, or ride our bikes until dinner time, and we did. Swinging Statue and Crack the Whip have probably been outlawed because someone might get hurt. We were only allowed a limited time to watch T.V., and even then it was a family pastime.

We, The Club, had a favorite game called Time Machine. All it takes is three little girls with huge imaginations and a few props. That’s all. You can be anyone you want, and you can go anywhere and do anything. In our case, it was a big cotton rope, knotted at the end and a sand box. The huge closet in the big bedroom upstairs was our Time Machine. We would go in there and invent our story line. When we re-emerged, we were in a different time and place.

I don’t remember exactly where we left off because it was a lifetime ago. The three of us invented times and places that we would magically appear in. It seemed that Judy, our cousin, was the ring leader in this game of dashing off into time. My sister, Anne (14 months younger than me), and I were perfectly happy to let Judy (only 9 months my junior) lead the way. It would have been four of us but by the time we’d gotten to these imaginative games, our older sister, Joanie, had other interests. Usually, she had her nose stuck in a book or she was off visiting her girlfriends and talking about boys. I guess she just sort of out-grew us.

It was decided that the time frame was somewhere in the 18th century. I am sure that this burst of ingenious imagination was sparked by the wonderful story our mothers had read to us, Swiss Family Robinson by Johann Wyss. We altered it a bit, so instead of the family of four boys a mother and a father, it was three beautiful young women shipwrecked on a deserted island. They must make use of the natural resources and some items recovered from their ship, to survive. We had washed up on shore, with a number of goats, chickens and supplies from the wrecked ship. We foraged for food, built tree houses, fetched buckets of water and milked the goats. I don’t recall that any one of us ever slaughtered one of the goats or chickens. That just wasn’t in our repertoire.

“Hey! You missed the bank! The vine swings this way over the stream! You are IN the stream!” Judy yelled with great knowledge and conviction.

“No I am not! We never talked about which way the stream would go anyway. It goes this way!” I would yell back.

Of course this game inevitably involved three strapping young men, presumably stranded months before us, who wanted to rescue us.

This ritualistic enchantment was only interrupted by our Aunt, who was Judy’s mother. She would call us over to a window for a brief Spanish lesson or to read something from a book on Astronomy or Entomology or about dinosaurs. These mini lessons were only a few minutes long, and then we would resume our time machine game. This one particular time machine game carried us through an entire summer.

Zoom back to the present with me for a moment.

I have grandchildren ranging in age from 6 to 15. There are certainly a lot of educational toys, like Leap Pad and Leap Frog games. I’ve been looking at toys and games of the current generation of children between the ages of 2years old through 12 years old. There are all kinds of electronic toys and games that actually do everything for you. All you have to do is move your thumbs and watch. There is even Guitar Hero for the kids when they outgrow these hand-held educational toys. You plug it in to the T.V. and plunk a sort of air guitar with no strings, according to colors displayed on the television screen. I’ve watched my grandson play with that, and it really looks like fun. But what does that really teach a child, anyway? I can see that it might teach some fine motor skills coordination. Let's not forget iPods for the older kiddies. These toys are very clever, but it still does not stoke imaginations the way simple things would.

The three of us have emerged from our childhood Time Machine in to senior adulthood, and as different as night and day. All of us fondly remember the creative game we played, and now we think of the impact it had on each of us … the directions it took us individually. It stirred up our imaginations and helped us become just who we are today. We can all agree that we three have never ceased to image what could be, and just how very powerful that can be.

So, today I am going into my closet to imagine what my day will be like. I can make it anything I want it to be. I will re-emerge into the world I have created in my mind. Forgive me if I seem to be having more fun than the rest of you.