When I walk out in my garden to cover up my cold frame for the night, I find it, the remains of the day, of the afternoon hour or two (a Green Hour, I suppose, as recommended by the National Wildlife Federation) that one or both of my kids spent frolicking out there.
There's a hula hoop hanging from a tree, for reasons I don't know. The table that is usually over there, under the Carolina jasmine, has been dragged to the middle of the yard and is covered with little plates of bright green moss, as if there had been a fairy luncheon. A basket of dominos mingles with rocks. The hammock, empty of leaves and other fall debris, holds a forgotten book and a pair of socks that came off feet that are almost my size now, warmed by the sudden afternoon sun. That hole on the edge of the yard seems to be getting larger and now has a bridge across it built from sticks. And the shells, gathered at sunrise morning-after-morning on our annual trips to south Florida, sit in carefully-arranged circles as if they were Stonehenge itself.
I clean up none of it, nor do I ask the kids to clean it up. For, by now, I know, that the remains of today are the starting point of tomorrow. And a well-thought-out game that has sprung from pure imagination is a beautiful thing.
And so another day passes where I know one thing for sure. The toy stores have nothing over my backyard.
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3 comments:
My dear, thank you for encouraging simple play and true imagination in your children. As someone who works with young people, I see all to often the side effects of "organized play:" lack of instinct, unwillingess to take risk, fear of all things unfamiliar.
Here's hoping your children build forts out of sofa cushions on rainy days!
I spent years with a failed vege patch turned in to a mud pond for young boys to play in.I clearly remember ringing other mums to check if their children were allowed to participate and then the big wash and hose down at the end! In winter we painted and I remember the hall way covered in paintings set out to dry.
Well they turned out to be an artist architect and a designer. Another winters day I remember we were building things and the whole house covered with old newspapers and boxes.
E and Maggie: Thank you for your comments! Maggie, do any of your childrne have blogs or websites? I'm intrigued that they all work in creative fields and I'd love to see more about what becomes of children allowed to dream and discover.
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