The holiday season encourages us to recall the highlights of the past year, but I’m thinking of a time much farther back when my younger daughter, now the CEO of a tech startup, spent hours in a room dedicated to playtime.
The Playroom
Where sumptuous wardrobes of paper dolls lay strewn in perfect disorder,
where plastic villages of Polly Pockets sprawled with open rooftops
along carpeted streets no vacuum dared sweep,
where Barbies stripped of fashion sense huddled stiffly in blonde-haired mounds,
my youngest vanished without a sound to a world of her own imagining,
until hours later, as if grabbed and yanked,
she started at the cry that overturned her world:
“Dinnertime!”
But there was an end to this violence
by a treaty never drawn on a date no one remembers,
when henceforward, all that would pass
among the wardrobes, through the villages,
and beside the blonde-haired mounds
were dust and time,
till all retreated to cardboard shelters in a musty closet,
and only the sticky outlines of half-devoured lollipops remained
to hint of years gone by.
Eventually the playroom resumed its dedicated role. Tripods and light stands and backdrops set the scene for my world of play with a camera and every object that caught my imagination. Sometimes I tiptoed there in the dark with a new idea; there I remained until sunrise pulled me away, sighing.
Ahh! Memories. Now my youngest granddaughter approaches her teenage years. Not so many dolls nowl
Good to hear from you, Tom!
Reminded me of our two daughters growing up😊. And I loved your new black and white addition! So cute.
Thanks, Imo Jeane!
How wonderful to have a room in your house for imagination. No wonder your daughter has the imagination to lead a tech startup!
It was wonderful indeed, no matter what she became!
Once again, your way with words transports me to your world, and I love it. Thanks, Sally.
How heartfelt! Love your photo; memories and your creations! Christmas time brings such warmth to our hearts.
Sweet memories
Sally, This was just delightful. Precious memories. Thank you for sharing. Carol L