Childish Toys for Grown-Ups

When I became a man I put away childish things, including the fear of childishness … C. S. Lewis

I agree, we don’t need to fear childish things. Perhaps we can benefit from seeking them out and adapting them. I recently watched my youngest grandchild, ten months old, gleefully playing in a Jolly Jumper. That’s the toy that is a seat hung from the ceiling, with the child placed inside so that the feet touch the ground. When he (or she) pushes down on their feet the seat briefly springs upward before gravity brings it down. I remember how much his mother loved it too when she was his age. It gives a child a sense of control over their body, and a feeling of pleasure from the repeated bounces. I think that adults, even older adults like me, would like something like that. And when I saw that my grandson fell asleep in his Jolly Jumper I realized that it was quite suitable even for people who may be unsteady on their feet or tire easily: it is good exercise, you control the level of force that you exert, there is no risk of falling, and when you get tired, you can just take a nap where you are.

There may be other supposedly childish things that are good for us grown-ups, even though some may require modifications. I have a catch-type game that I used to play with another grandchild that consists of two round disks, about 6 inches in diameter, with a band on the back that the hand fits in. The front of the disk is covered with Velcro, and the game comes with a ball with a fuzzy covering. To play, you need to stand several feet apart; one person throws the ball and the other simply sticks out the disk to catch the ball in the Velcro. You then pull the ball off the Velcro to toss it back. The only problem with extended play is that if you often miss catching the ball you may have to walk a distance to get it and then bend down to pick it up. This disadvantage could be remedied by having a larger Velcro- covered catcher’s disk mitt, perhaps as much as three feet in diameter. This would greatly increase your chances of catching the ball, thus reducing the need to run and bend to pick it up. It could also serve as a shield, protecting you from getting hit by the ball! Furthermore, I always found that there were two main pleasures in playing this game: the satisfaction of hearing the thud sound when the ball hit the disk, and having conversations with my grandchild while playing. The revised game could increase both of those.

Another suggestion for adapting a game from childhood for adults was made by my friend Tanya. One of her favorite toys in childhood was the Slinky. This is a helical spring toy, that could “walk” down a flight of stairs, going end-over-end as gravity brings it down the stairs. This was always great fun to watch. A disadvantage as you get older is that while you can still enjoy seeing the Slinky go down a staircase, to keep playing you would need to go down the stairs to retrieve it, and then walk up the stairs to start the process again. Tanya’s suggestion is to tie a long string to the slinky so that once it finished going down the staircase, a gentle pull could bring it back to you- and you could start it again without ever having to move from your position. Of course you would need to attach the string so that it would not get caught in the Slinky as it moved, but I think this is possible.

Some of the adaptations of toys for adults may lose the benefit of providing exercise. But if you find this is so, you can get into your Jolly Jumper to safely move around a bit. And once you get tired out- just take a nap in it.

One of my own favorites from childhood is the Busy Box, and I even kept one in my office years ago. These are colorful plastic toys, usually rectangular, with an assortment of doors to open, figures to squeak or buttons to push that cause objects to pop out.  In time of stress I laughed as I used it to give myself a break. It also helped me focus my thoughts, and if a colleague called or wanted to meet I could in complete honesty say Sorry, I’m busy. I kept a Busy Box in my office for many years, but lost track of it after several moves. But now in retirement, while I have much to engage me, a Busy Box may be just the thing when I don’t feel like doing chores around the house… Sorry dear, I’m just too busy.

 Of course with current technology, some of the items in Busy Boxes could be made more interesting to adults. They could include a changing array of challenging puzzles to solve, games to play and information to learn. We might even use it to communicate with others.  Come to think of it, maybe we all already have adult Busy Boxes in our I-phones and haven’t left this toy behind in childhood after all.

What’s the lesson here? Find things that you enjoy, whatever your age, and regardless of the age group they were developed for. You can use them yourself or take them out when you have a friend or a grandchild visiting. And even if some playthings from childhood are no longer very practical, like a Jolly Jumper, you may find, as I did, that just thinking about it and envisioning using it, gives you pleasure.