My favorite age to do just about anything with a child is around 4 years old. They’re out of that baby stage, have no inhibitions, think the world revolves around their little lives, are full of a genuine lust for learning, and can make you smile out loud with their words, thoughts and actions. After that, the snark quickly sets in and the questioning of authority, and you start saying things like “because I said so”.
This is my little man at about 4. Everything this boy
touched transmogrified (thank you,
Calvin & Hobbes for that awesome
word) into a Super Hero accessory. This “sword” was, in its earlier life, his
little sister’s glitter baton which had been
tied with a ribbon found in my craft supplies so he could wear it “ninja
style” around his neck. His “mask” was of course, a swim goggle worn upside down so it fit more like a mask and less like a goggle, but when he
donned both of those accessories he became a certified super hero limited only
by his imagination. And he had plenty of that.
He was an 80’s baby, so his heroes were aplenty. Superman
was at the top of the list, but he also loved He-Man, Thundercats, Batman, all
the Ninja Turtles and every DC comic book character there was. Every single one. He knew their
background story, their powers, their weaknesses, and their arch enemies. He had super hero underwear, super hero pj's, a super hero toothbrush, and super hero sheets.
He knew that Jor-El and Lor-El were Superman’s birth parents
from the planet Krypton, and that John and Martha Kent were his Earth parents.
The first movie he ever went to see was not a kiddy Disney movie, but Superman IV, the Quest for Peace. He
went with his dad, and I (lucky me) got to sit through The Chipmunk Adventure with his little sister in an adjoining
theater. It was definitely the short stick draw for me, but was the absolute highlight of my little man's day.
He could, and did, sing the theme song to all of the cartoons on TV. He-Man was one of his favorites to watch. He stood to sing the
He-Man song, holding his imaginary sword in the air. That magical sword harnessed the power of the mysterious Castle Greyskull and
transformed Prince Adam into He-Man. For that moment, he was He-Man, with his neck veins
protruding from saying “I HAVE THE POWER!” with all his little might.
On most days, my little SH had some sort of cape attached to
his neck by a clothespin, and I’m sure
it made him run faster and have big muscles. Usually it was fashioned from a
kitchen towel, but he had a plethora of capes from Halloween costumes to choose
from. Most had been tied so many times the strings were all broken, so that
clothespin came in handy. We had many excursions out in the “real” world fully costumed.
He walked tall and proud and totally “in-character”. I got a lot of looks at
the grocery store and post office, but they were sweet looks and not the “OMG,
you poor thing” looks. He had the Superman stance perfected with his fisted hands
on his hips, feet spread and his head looking to one side.
One of his plastic Halloween masks from a Superman costume
had the traditional Superman haircut – you know, the one with that little swirl
in the front. He once asked me “the next
time you cut my hair, could you please cut it like Superman's?”. I knew exactly what he wanted... it was that little swirl in the front. Oh, if only I could have, but alas he was blessed with stick straight hair and no amount of product was going to produce that swirl. It made my life
interesting and full of smiles and warmed my heart like only a mother’s heart
could be warmed.
He was adorable and an incredibly happy little boy. My
little SH is 30 now and still has that warm, happy heart he had at 4. He’s a
good man, with the same nerdy panache for super hero trivia, and can still melt
my heart. He’s intelligent and loving
and considerate, and most important to me, he’s kind. A good human being, plain and simple.
I treasure my memories
of you in your carefree moments of imaginary role-playing. You sure were good at it. I love you, little
man. “Up, up, and away!”
