The imagination
My son is not that old… he’s coming up on the two year marker (rather quickly, in fact). Young though he is, he’s beginning to show flashes of imagination, and I love it.
His world is small. There are people he knows by name, but not many of them. His concept of work is severely crippled by the fact that his dad works from home (to him, work means sequestering yourself in a different room). His concept of the rest of the world consists of the places he routinely ends up (CVS, Walmart, Walgreens, Church, and the Library). And yet, within his little world, there is great opportunity for invention. He can be one of his great aunts going to work. He can be any one of his grandparents going to Walmart. He can be daddy. He can be mommy. He can be Farmer Dooley. Whatever occurs to him, he makes happen (the gender confusion thing, I’m sure, will sort itself out). The language barrier is still strongly in place — I can’t get too much of a window into what he’s thinking, yet. But I love watching it develop. It’s a great reminder of how fantastic and big and different the world is when you’re not accustomed to it.
Experiencing the familiar through the eyes of someone experiencing the new is inspiring; it’s a gift from my son to me, and often a gift from a writer to their readers.
beautiful, andrew!
Beautiful viewpoint, and beautifully said!
I think he is a knucklehead. I love that little knucklehead.
What a great post.
And he is a knucklehead, but it is so wonderful to see his imagination grow daily. He has been on the phone with Farmer Dooley this morning. I love this kid!
I’m hoping we’ll get down in the fall so I can pretend with him in person!