“The essence of childhood, of course, is play, which my friends and I did endlessly on streets that we reluctantly shared with traffic.”

I have always been in awe of how easily little kids make new friends. They haven't been hurt yet and therefore they have no reason to mistrust...they just see a new playmate. Someone to play their ridiculous made-up imaginary games with. For instance, when I was a child, I specifically remember that my brother and I used to pretend we were Merpeople in the pool when we were in Florida.



That is another thing that constantly impresses me about little children, their ability to make up the most ridiculous games and play them with such dedication and intensity. The made up rules just roll off of their tongues into existence and they are obeyed like the Bible. It is a truly amazing thing to see children come up with these totally bizarre stories and act them out with such conviction! It makes me so happy to see that children are still using their imaginations, that they haven't been killed by Nintendo DS, xBox and Wii (although...I must admit...I love my Wii).

I worry about children in this day and age...their lives are so different...they are so inundated and influenced by the media and technology that it would be so easy for imagination and make-believe to come second to an afternoon sitting in front of their computer playing the Sims or some Warcraft game.

I really think that we all need go back to that time in our lives where we can make friends with reckless abandon. Sure, these might not be lasting friendships but with every new person that we meet we learn a little something new about ourselves.