THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, November 20, 1994 TAG: 9411200065
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: ELIZABETH SIMPSON
LENGTH: Medium: 72 lines
I dreamed upon a starry sky.
And swung my arms up and down to make snow angels on a screen cast with blue and green light.
I climbed halfway across a mountain before crashing back to Earth. And poked my finger in water to write ``Liz was here'' in rainbow colors.
And then, just about the time I was getting the hang of the rock-climbing wall, it was time to go back to the world of adults.
Bummer.
Sorry, but you guys out here with your suits and ties and fax machines and meetings are boring.
For almost two hours I had pure, unadulterated fun at a preview showing of the new Children's Museum of Virginia. The problems of the office and the world melted away as I took the advice of the guy at the door: ``Let the kid in you come out.''
I'm happy to report, she's still in there. And she still has a lousy sense of balance.
That's OK. I still had fun.
What a world of good it would do if, building by building, we let the grown-ups out of their offices for an hour of play at the Children's Museum.
They'd come back refreshed, re-energized and taking themselves a heck-of-a-lot less seriously. After all, there are lessons only 7-year-olds can teach.
``I've gone across four times,'' a red-rubber-booted boy named Jeffrey told me as he breathlessly scaled the rock wall yet again. ``It's easy.''
Yeah, right, kid. Try adding on 100 pounds.
Anyone who has children has discovered this secret: Playing is good for the spirit.
Before I had kids I had forgotten how to play. I didn't have a good excuse. When I tried, it felt awkward and stiff. Embarrassing even. I held back. But with my kids as examples, I lose my fear. I jump in right behind them; suddenly my mind is free. And for the moment, anyway, life is as good as it was at 10.
I've spent many a rainy afternoon with a box of crayons, trying to keep my children at the table for just one more picture. ``Just a minute, I'm almost done,'' I yell as they scamper off.
I've been secretly mad when they knocked over the sand castle I spent 30 minutes and five buckets of water constructing. And pleaded with my 3-year-old to - just this once - ride the horses on the merry-go-round instead of the tea-cup seat because Mom likes those best.
I've gained a new appreciation of rocks and seashells of every color and shape. We have buckets of them sitting around the house. Try to clear them out and you'd think you were dumping diamonds.
Parents, children and the young-at-heart know the city of Portsmouth is on to something with this place of imagination. While the Children's Museum is designed with kids in mind, the exhibits are big enough for adults to play on too.
It's an open invitation to clear out the mental cobwebs and pop inside the clear-skied minds of children. Like Tom Hanks in the movie ``Big,'' you discover that thinking like a kid is liberating.
The next time I go to the museum it'll probably be with my children. But should I ever feel my head muddled with work-a-day detail, I'll go back alone to touch the starry sky and climb the mountain one more time.
The Children's Museum of Virginia, 221 High St. in Portsmouth, opens Dec. 10. ILLUSTRATION: Color photo
MARK MITCHELL/Staff
Two children try their skills on the rock-climbing wall at a preview
tour of the Children's Museum of Virginia, which opens Dec. 10.
by CNB