I worked remotely last week to keep an eye on my son Abe while he was off school. Amazingly, he played with toys for several hours by himself without disturbing me.
Abe constantly imagines stories playing out between his toy vehicles and action figures on the fly. A dinosaur eats a truck and a barbie doll and he proclaims it an omnivore.
Meanwhile, I try to play next to him, and I go through the motions. I get writer’s block, while he tells story after story.
Abe builds with Legos and blocks letting a project evolve. He started building a jet ski and then when it seemed like it wasn’t turning out the way he wanted, the project became an electric boat, which he wanted to be aerodynamic, even though he just learned the word and wasn’t totally sure what it meant.
Like most adults, I edit myself too much. I don’t let my thoughts just flow out. What if I could fearlessly come up with idea after idea fast like him and try them without stopping myself?
I’d call new customers on a gut feeling they could help me with finding a machine. I’d create new types of videos and blogs I had dismissed as too hard. I’d come up with new ways to be a good husband and father.
Question: What did you build when you were a kid?
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Go carts, homemade pedal tractor out of scrap pile parts, attachments and accessories for the farm toys… Raised on a dairy farm.
bicycles and dirt bikes….i was obsessed.
everything with Legos
back then there were very few special pieces and shapes
You needed a good imagination
Had a great time before Covid mentoring a Lego robotics team at a local school
Sometimes I think I had more fun than some of the Kids
Noah, if you did not edit yourself you might not be a better husband or father.
When I was 9 in 1969 a buddy and I wanted a gokart. We snuck in the scrapyard after hours and shopped for pipe and other metal pieces. A neighbor gave us a lawnmower for the engine. And we had the drunk gas station owner weld it up for us, to his humor. It all came together, and we rode it all over town. The cops stopped us a few times but when they found out we built it ourselves (with some help from Dad) they’d chuckle and let us go. SO much fun!
Erector set, Chemistry set. Projects for Boy Scout badges (An electric motor out of nails!) Crystal radio set. No screens – until B&W TV came along. Remember “Winky Dink” interactive TV?