Sparked imaginations...

As I type this, all three of my kids are running around the house with backpacks on their backs. Nicholas has a Lightning McQueen backpack, Sophie a ladybug backpack, and Lucas his school backpack...Bakugan. They are being "secret agents." So I am told. I love this age when anything and everything can spark their imaginations. We were watching a movie this afternoon about a young boy who becomes a spy. Suddenly--mid-movie--Lucas hopped up and ran to his room to get "in character". Apparently, a secret agent wears a black and silver knight costume, a Power Rangers mask, and a Bakugan backpack. Perfect attire, I think, for a spy trying to be inconspicuous and blend into his surroundings. Regardless of the questionable costume, I love that spark in Lucas' eye when he gets excited about something. He throws himself into his play with complete abandon. Yesterday, he watched a documentary about great white sharks. He then spent the entire afternoon trying to build a shark out of discarded cereal boxes that he fished out of our recycle bin. In all honestly, it looked nothing like a shark...unless there is a rectangular shaped species of shark that I am unaware of. And the Froot Loops logo on the fin kind of took away from the shark's menacing mystique. Regardless, Lucas was beaming with pride when he showed me his creation.

I think I need to try to be a little more like my son. I would like to allow myself to become completely captivated by something. I can't remember the last time something captured my imagination and excited me in the way that Lucas gets excited. Every day it is something new that fascinates and intrigues him. The whole world is his playground and every minute is an opportunity for discovery. At what point did we, as adults, lose that? When did we stop getting excited about the world around us? When did we stop reveling in a new discovery...no matter how insignificant? When did we stop playing?

Yet again, I am learning from my kids rather than the other way around. What else is new..........?