My 8 year old niece asked me why grownups don't play pretend anymore

She caught me zoning out on the deck last weekend just watching the clouds float by. She asked what I was doing and I said thinking. Then she said that's just boring pretend for adults. Honestly that hit me harder than I expected. For a solid minute I couldn't come up with a good reason why I stopped making up stories about clouds looking like dragons or talking animals. Now every time I sit outside I try to actually imagine what that big fluffy cloud is supposed to be instead of just staring. Has anyone else had a kid say something that totally flipped your brain around like that?

2 comments

2 Comments

the_gavin1mo ago

Man, that reminds me of my buddy Dave. His kid asked why he never drew pictures anymore and now he keeps a sketchpad on his nightstand. Kids really know how to call us out on forgetting the fun stuff, don't they?

noahbaker1mo ago

I heard a psychologist say adults actually do pretend, we just call it planning or daydreaming instead.