Free Spirits and Scream Tests

As I watch Zack discover the world and put things together, it amazes me the progress a child makes. I don’t know if my son is different from others. I do know he exhibits an amazing imagination for a three year old. Of course, having a father that routinely goes into a fantasy world to write and game must help.

Thomas the Tank Engine is a favorite world of his engine shunt troublesome trucks and get into all sorts of trouble. Luckily their friends are always there to help.

A second world he loves is that of sharks, dolphins, whales and sea turtles. We have a pool and he has a set of these creatures that migrate between the pool and the bath tub. Indeed, there are some nights with bath protests turn into shouts of joy with the introduction of a shark to the tub.

He and I explore the house looking for flying sharks, dinosaurs, or even the mundane black frogs with yellow eyes. We also chase non-imaginary butterflies, play with caterpillars, and talk to Buddy the Lizard.

Buddy deserves special note. He is a gecko that lives in an old banana plant husk by the pool. The only remarkable thing about Buddy is that he is always in the banana plant. Zack talks to him. Asks how he is doing and then screams at him trying to get him to move.

Zack explores the world in bursts of speed followed by motionless but intense scrutiny. He experiments with animals seeing how the react to various stimuli. Normally this starts with a finger, followed by gentle tones of reassurance. He play with the worm, insect, frog, cat, dog, or other subject showing the animal to Debbie and I. Eventually, however, it always winds up with the scream test.

Sometimes I worry about Zack. :-)