Things I want my kids to know

I played laser tag last weekend and I had so much fun. I was buzzing for a good couple of days afterwards.

I had taken my daughter to a birthday party and I had assumed that it would be a drop-and-go situation. I was kind of looking forward to an hour or two to myself just pootling about, maybe having a read or listening to a podcast, but when we got there, the birthday girl’s mum said these magic words:

“Do you want to play?”

Oh my word. I was beside myself. “Can I? Can I really? Yes, absolutely I want to! Thank you!”

For context: I hadn’t played laser tag since I was about 15. I had a little phase were me and my mates would do it for our birthdays and I absolutely loved it, but I hadn’t gone back since.

I had such a good time, to the degree that my daughter said that she thought I was enjoying it more than she and her friends were (fair point, I reckon). I think a big part of this is that I genuinely felt the same excitement I felt when I was 14.

It made me think, though: hold up, if I like this so much, how come I don’t do it?

If I am honest, I think I would feel a bit hesitant about going out to do laser tag, or popping out to play kerbie (another belter of a game), and when I try to work out what that is about, I think it is about being silly and completely losing yourself in something. I came out of laser tag very sweaty, but sometimes I think I hold back from some things like that because I don’t want to get my clothes dirty, or it feels like completely losing yourself in something like that is embarrassing in some way.

I think for the most part, young kids don’t have as much self-consciousness about that kind of stuff, so when they are doing something, they can just be free to whoop and cheer and sweat and giggle, but as we get older that starts to reduce. Maybe you stop singing or drawing pictures because it becomes more about whether it is good enough or what people will think, rather than just the pleasure of doing things.

But that’s a shame, isn’t it? That’s what I thought about, coming out of laser tag: I should have more of that in my life. Not laser tag specifically, but moments and experiences where I can just really get immersed in it, and be genuinely joyful, even if that means being or appearing a bit “silly.”

More dancing. More singing. More silly voices and giggles. More make believe, messiness and creativity.

All of that from laser tag.

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Thanks for reading. Until next week,

Ted

P.S. My daughter is going to want me to stop being the one to take her to parties at some point. isn't she.