Oh yes…. I’m the Great Pretender….

Oh yes I’m the great pretender.

I have always loved to pretend, and yes, even at the rotten (not really feeling ripe anymore) old age of almost 63 I still pretend. I hope think that’s normal.  In today’s high-tech world I think it is an admirable trait to see in children.  Adults… well that’s another story I guess.

As a kid, I had a lot of time to fill.  I grew up before Little League, gymnastics, dance classes, swim teams, and other activities became the norm.    We did have a black and white TV,but I didn’t spend much time watching.   Shows for children were limited and my mother wisely turned it off and we watched mainly in the evening as a family.

I had the basic toys; I had a couple of  dolls and clothes for them. My brother and I  always had bikes and sleds and my favorite uncle bought us a pogo stick which my mother was sure would result in the loss of all of our front teeth.  I had a rope swing that hung from the tree in our yard.  I had a small plastic swimming pool in the summer that was maybe 6 inches deep. Most of the time I was outdoors  because my parents were farmers and that’s where they spent much of their time.   I walked back to the woods and to a nearby river.  When Mom and Dad were planting or harvesting, my brother and I went along and had to entertain ourselves in the middle of a soon-to-be-planted or harvested  corn or soybean field.   Most of the time I was alone, so I pretended.   I had imaginary friends that I played with and talked to much of the time.

I think that’s why I still enjoy alone time.  I never have trouble finding things to do by myself.  And I still pretend.  I really like to replay conversations I have with others that in my opinion didn’t go well.  I pretend I say all those things I shouldn’t say but really want to.  I am actually quite clever…. after the fact.

A couple of months ago when we were in the midst of farming and I was running meals to and fro in our old beat-up pickup truck, I kept having this fantasy about being in a country music video.  There I am driving my pickup truck through a field with dust blowing behind me, racing toward a tractor with a handsome young farmer operating it.  (This part is actually true… well, maybe not the “young” part but it sounds better than a handsome old farmer.   I come screeching (can you screech in the middle of a plowed field?) to a halt and the young/old farmer jumps/climbs off the tractor and runs/walks up to greet me with a big grin and a big cowboy hat/dirty ball cap  in his hand.

“Howdy ma’am” he drawls.  “I sure am hankerin’ for a drink of ice-cold sweet tea.”   He watches me pour the tea into a tall glass filled with ice  and flashes me a grin.  His muscles are quite visible through his plaid cowboy shirt.  I return the smile sweetly and shyly and my long blonde hair blows across my face….

“Hey, what are you so happy about?”  I am snatched back to reality by my husband’s voice…. “Got any tea?”

“Oh I’m just glad to see you…. “

Yes, that’s me… the Great Pretender….. music fades….as we walk hand in hand across the field.

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