The Diary of Joy

Playful Joy

20. Peace, the year of the Phoenix

Dear Angel,

After everything that has happened with Chatterbox, it made me think a lot about the past, about the good old days. Yes, yes, I know. It sounds strange when someone my age speaks of the good old days, but I feel like it's true.

When I was smaller, there were fewer problems and difficult situations to go through. We were able to be carefree and happy. I think that's the way children should always be, but I guess it wasn't easy for my brother to stay like that, after all the terrible things he had been told when all he wanted to do was fit in.

Anyway, back to the happier topics. What I wanted to share with you today are some of my most precious childhood memories. I think that by revisiting them once again I can make some kind of balance between what was and what is.

Not so long ago, when I was still very little and maybe not so wise, I was quite playful. I loved playing (I still do), but some of my games weren't so interesting to the other members of my family.

For example, my elf grandfather could tell you a thing or two about the games I played that honestly don't sound so fun right now. Still, to the young me, they were the most hilarious thing ever.

One time I took his shaving knife and hid it. When he asked me if I knew where it was, I told him that we were playing hide and seek. Honestly, it was very nice of him not to get angry, but that only made me bolder.

At first, I kept hiding it inside his house, but at one point I decided it was not enough. So, my young, innovative mind, decided to bury the shaving knife under my grandpa's oak tree to see if he could find it there.

I was surprised when he couldn't find it. Honestly, I was proud of myself since this had proved to me that I was very good at hiding things. I am not sure why, but that knowledge meant a lot. It made me feel as if I had accomplished something big, something incredible.

Finally, I was ordered by my parents to retrieve the shaving knife and stop playing with it. I did as I was told, but that didn't lessen my victory. As far as I was concerned, grandpa had lost the hide and seek game and I was free to move on to the other games.

Another game that I used to play was the Branch People Game. Yeah, it is like it sounds. It's a game in which I imagine that branches are people and play the same way one would with dolls. The craziest thing about it was that I loved it.

It was my favorite game since I could imagine what they were like and give them the appearance as well the characteristics I liked the best. At the time, my magic wasn't so reliable so instead, I used my imagination. That was how I learned that I had another powerful tool that I could use, that I still use even now when I do have the control of my magic.

The beautiful thing about imagination is that you don't need to do anything just sit there and wait for the worlds of wonder to appear in front of you. With magic, there is always room for mistakes (I have made many mistakes), but with imagination everything is perfect. You make the rules, and they are always obeyed.

You can create worlds that you like and that never do anything that you dislike. They are perfect, something that is impossible to have in real life, even with magic.

Now don't get me wrong, I love my magic, but sometimes it can also be dangerous. In contrast, using one's imagination is always safe and comfortable. You can have all these amazing adventures and yet you might never live the comfort of your room.

However, I feel that back then, I had more imagination than I have now. It's like now that I know that I have the power of magic at my disposal I have forgotten how to use my imagination.

Maybe by remembering what I did as a young fair-elf child, I can help myself became more imaginative and less magical, I don't know. It's definitely nice to remember those days, fun. I feel warmth around my heart at bringing those sweet memories to the forefront of my mind.

Another game that dad told me I used to play that I don't remember is the Rock Family Game. It was a game where I would find a group of random rocks and explain to him that they were a family. They generally went along with my ideas and listened to my stories to see what fun or crazy ideas I had at any moment.

Dad also says that I never had two families that were the same. I guess, having a unique family made me more likely to create unique rock families that according to them had long histories which I explained in great detail.

The person who had (and still has) the most patient for my stories is my elf grandma. She is always so patient with me, and she even participates in all of my games no matter how silly she finds them.

One time, I found some of my mother's old paints and I told grandma that we should paint our faces. Imagine my delight when she agreed! It was the best day ever!

I took the paints and drew cat whiskers on her face. Then, I added the nose and many other details to make her look like a cat. It was the best cat ever made, if I do say so myself. I did a splendid job.

When grandma saw herself in the mirror, she was laughing so hard that it made me so happy. It was rare for her to be that joyous about something since she always worried. So, the fact that I made her so happy meant the world.

In turn, grandma painted my face into one of a lion which was awesome. She is very good at painting so when I saw myself in the mirror, the whiskers and the color, everything was just perfect. It felt like I had become a lion.

Of course, that was when I started chasing her around the house making lion noises. It was a game which was joined in by many people that were around, and I felt so special. I knew it wasn't real, but they made it seem real, they played along and I feel these days people don't do that nearly enough.

A small problem was that I never wanted to wash the paint away. It was too cool not to wear it every day for the rest of my life. I loved it so much that I was ready to do whatever it took to keep it forever.

My mother, however, is an awesome mother who knows exactly what to do in these kinds of situations. She told me that if I stayed the lion forever, she would terribly miss her little girl and grandma wouldn't have anyone to bake cookies for. Suffice it to say, that night the lion went away. Still, from time to time, I like to dress up and paint my face in funny ways.

Anyways, I better get going. I was planning on taking a little walk before dinner. I have found a nice little place nearby where I can escape when I need some alone time.

Love,

Joy