Mud is fun to play with

My daughter was watching 3-year-old Jacob play outside when it suddenly started raining. His first reaction was an enthusiastic, “Yeah! M-u-u-u-u-d!”
Of all his toys, what he likes best is some dirt and an unlimited supply of water. An empty cup and a plastic shovel are also welcome but not necessary. An older sister to spread the mud on is a bonus. Plus, she will rub the gooey mess on his back and anywhere else he isn’t already covered with it. They can spend hours playing like this. Even the baby gets in on the fun.
The soil down in their area of the world is very sandy. When they tire of making a mess, the mud dries and flakes off, leaving semi-clean children and less of a chore for their mother to clean up.
Mud has many uses. As most men and boys know, mud is often used to remove the sheen from new baseballs so pitchers can get a better grip on them. Ball players used to use tobacco juice for this but they found that mud worked better. Plus, mud doesn’t have as much of an “ick factor” as tobacco juice.
A story I found about the Taj Mahal said it was to be cleaned last year by applying a layer of mud and once the mud dried, the structure would then be washed with distilled water. This was supposed to render it more bright and beautiful. I failed to find a follow-up story that told if it worked as well as they expected it to.
Mud is the main ingredient of bricks and the basic recipe has been used for thousands of years. Adobe is one of several types of mud bricks, and is used for building homes and other buildings. Adobe uses a straw additive for increased strength.
The addition of crushed rock, shells, straw or other things is determined by the materials available and the eventual purpose of the bricks, such as building material, ovens, pavers and such.
Mud has been used as a beauty treatment for centuries. Early Romans believed mud from the moors promoted health and strength.
The application of mud has been said to improve the circulation, soothe achy muscles and reduce swelling in joints. It is seen as a natural exfoliant and a skin softener. A mud bath (isn’t that an oxymoron?) is supposed to be relaxing and excellent for easing stress and relieving insomnia. Applied to the face mud is supposed to provide a natural facelift that firms the skin.
If this is the case, Jacob and his siblings will keep their perfect skin for a long, long time.
Some mud is seen as having a natural healing ability. I read that in Austrian casualty departments mud is used as a treatment for burns. Personally, I wouldn’t recommend this.
While we’re on the healing possibilities of mud, there is a story in the Bible about Jesus using mud to restore sight to a blind man. In John, chapter nine, Jesus happens upon a man who was blind from birth. Jesus spit on the ground and rubbed the resulting mud on the man’s eyes. He told the man to go wash and after he did, the man could see. It was one of many miracles he was said to perform.
I doubt if Jacob and his siblings care about healing or beauty. They just like the squishy feel of mud in their hands and on their bodies. They like that it can be thick or thin. They add sticks and leaves just to see what will happen. They throw it at each other. They fill cups, bowls and stray toys with mud then dump it out and start all over. It is an endless source of pleasure and sheer joy.
For Jacob, mud is the best plaything a child could ever have.[[In-content Ad]]