The Power of Play

Yesterday was my second son's end of the year "fun day"! Can I tell you how fun it was? They had inflatables. They had waterslides. They had snowcones. They had popcorn. We had FUN! The most fun, though, was the large number of water guns David's teacher brought for the kids. She bought the guns from some dollar store and they amounted to nothing more than huge syringes that would suck up the water and expell it under pressure at a very high rate of speed. The kids couldn't really use them to the maximum level because they were strong enough. That's really why the parents stepped in. We only wanted to show them how to use the water guns.

The next thing I know I'm involved in a major water battle that envy any sailor. People were falling. Water was flying. We were all laughing. At one point, one parent remarked, "You know what the sad thing is? She bought those water guns for the kids and not one kid has a water gun!" That was ok, though, because they had the inflatables. Of course, as in any battle, there was collateral damage - those who did NOT want to get wet, but did. You can't always retrieve a bullet once it has been fired and you can't always predict exactly where your water bombs may land. They did come from the dollar store! All in all, I had as much fun shooting water guns at people yesterday as I've had in a long time.

The result of all this fun.... I was thoroughly tired when I got home last night. I was refreshed and de-stressed (if there is such a thing). I benefited greatly from the day. It reminded me of the Jeffersons episode where George and Wheezy fought each other and the neighbors with those enormous orange q-tip looking things. When that battle was over, they were de-stressed (if there is such a thing) and their relationships were strengthened. One man even told me when it was over, that I should write into our church's constitution a provision that requires the entire church family to fire upon one another with water guns after every vote that is note a unanimous vote. I'm seriously considering it. Maybe we could even use the baptistry as a reloading station?