Everyone should get a toy (01/05/2009)

Last evening I watched a 10-year-old girl spend at least a quarter of an hour detaching a doll from a box. It took a pair of scissors and lots of patience but Hanna Montana was finally released from bondage. It was several more minutes before her accessories joined her in freedom.

I was impressed at how calmly and quietly Mya went about her task. I know adults who would have given up in frustration long before she did. They would have been quite vocal with their disapproval of how well the item was packaged. Not this kid. She kept on working until she was successful and didn't complain at all.

When my brothers were little I would always remove the majority of the packaging before giving them their toys. I didn't do that this year. The remote control airplane I gave David came complete with every twist tie, plastic cord and industrial-strength piece of tape that it possessed when it left the factory.

Perhaps that is why it was still in the box long after the Christmas festivities were over. He brought out a different new flying toy for us to play with. I handed back the controls after trying to decapitate my other brother, Michael, with the propellers.

Michael promptly flew the thing straight at his girlfriend. It was an exercise in agility and reaction time for the rest of us. He eventually took it outside where there were fewer people.

People never outgrow the need for toys. The packaging is another matter entirely. One of my co-workers spent an entire evening freeing a present for her great-granddaughter.

Toys have been around as long as humans have, perhaps longer. Many animals have been known to play with toys. Sticks, rocks, and leaves are good for carrying, nudging and pouncing. Butterflies, insects and birds are good for chasing. The problem with little live things is that they are rather fragile and tend to die, thus ending the game.

Dolls, figurines and miniature versions of the objects of everyday life are often found during archaeological explorations. I still don't think this is much different than grave robbing. There are theories that these artifacts are of religious significance. Some of them probably are, but I believe that others are simply toys.

Playthings often serve to promote abilities that will be needed later in life. A doll can teach compassion (until it is stripped naked and tossed under the bed). A stick can be a sword (not much call for sword fighters any more) or something to write in the mud with or to poke things with. In fact, a good stick can be any number of things and all it requires is a little creative thinking.

Games teach strategy and how to read body language. They demonstrate how to win gracefully and how to lose without violence. Games teach teamwork and can help strengthen social bonds. They also teach one how to behave in an acceptable manner. Anyone who disobeys these rules will soon learn that they are left to play by themselves.

Toys are entertaining. The best ones require a little imagination. They require participation. If a toy does all the work then it is no fun. That is why a box is often more fun than the toy it once contained. A box can be anything. A toy that requires no imagination will soon find its way under the bed with the naked dolls.

I consider toys to be essential. They bring us pleasure. They provide a little escape from everyday life. Toys allow us to be children again, if just for a short while.

Adults also need toys. They call them hobbies. In reality they are toys for grownups. They provide a mini-vacation from the world. Toys, I mean hobbies, are a good way to escape the winter blues and the post-holiday letdown.

Let's go play.[[In-content Ad]]