Sunday, July 1, 2012

Make Believe

I know that each generation before me has uttered these words: "things were better in our time." I also know that my generation and each generation that will come after me will also utter these words. It is true that as the younger generation takes shape, I, as my parents and my parents' parents, look at the future generation in disbelief at the things they like. Their clothes, their music, their idea of fun, it is all but a mystery to me.

I remember when I was little, me and my best friend ran in between the concrete and cars of the parking garage in my building, but we saw so much more than that. We saw adventures. We pretended to be super heroes in the world of She-Ra. We saw a land of magic. We pretended to be Katy Mahoney, from Lady in Blue, and with our finger in the right position, all of a sudden we were armed police officers fighting against crime. We played house with our stuffed dogs and pretended they were our children. In order to justify the fact that we had dogs as children, we explained that our husbands were werewolves, which to us sounded totally plausible.

I spent the best times of my childhood with her, creating, imagining, dancing, and developing crushes on cute boys.

I look at the generation before me and it saddens me their loss of innocence at such a young age, the loss of imagination and the ability to play make believe. Their desire to buy things instead of creating their own toys, as I did in my childhood.

My friend passed away at the tender age of 19 of multiple organ failure, but she left with me the most beautiful gift: the ability to dream.

I am not very good writing tutorials,  but I wanted to share one of our favorite projects: our own movie theater.

You will need an old shoe box, paper cutter, tape, white printing paper, markers (or crayons, colored pencils), ruler, and 2 unsharpened pencils.



First, using your ruler draw a 3 x 3 inch square (or a bigger size, depending on the size of your shoe box). Using your paper cutter knife, cut the square out.

Along both sides sides of your box, cut out little holes that are wide enough to fit your pencils comfortably.




Get your white printing paper and fold it in half and cut it, using your paper cutter (or scissors). Once you have as many strips of paper as you want, tape them together.



Leaving about 3 inches of blank paper, draw your little story on the strip of paper, one frame at a time. Then tape each end of the strip of paper to your pencil so you can roll your paper up and down.







You can create all types of little stories and decorate your movie theater box as simple or as elaborate as you want. I remember my best friend and I used to spend hours and rolls and rolls of paper on our stories. We would have presentations for our friends, where we narrated our adventures in the most enthusiastic way.

She was the one who taught me to make this movie theater. And I will always love her.

26 comments:

Kathryn Zbrzezny said...

What a beautiful tribute to your creative friend. I think it is important to talk about those we have loved and lost, to keep them very much alive in our hearts and memories. That movie theater is really cool! I can easily picture making this with friends and students. Have a wonderful new week, Ana.

The Cranky said...

Such a loving, and lovely, tribute; thank you for letting us see your friend (as well as your younger self) through your eyes.

Your movie theatre looks like such a fun project! I could see doing this with a child on a rainy afternoon; watching their imaginations coming alive. Such a happy thought. =)

GlorV1 said...

I agree. A beautiful tribute indeed. Also a very good tutorial that looks like a lot of fun. Thank you for stopping by my blog and leaving a comment and a very nice one at that. I'm also glad you found my blog because now I have found yours and I too shall have you on my reading list. Have a great week. I look forward to reading your posts. Love your family pet members.

turquoisemoon said...

Ooh...what a beautiful way to remember your friend. A wonderful tribute. It made me happy and sad. Thank you for sharing such a heartfelt story.

rebecca said...

ana this is truly an offering of innocent days gone by all wrapped up in the thrill of a best friend.
thank you for this tender glimpse into your colorful imagination and the lasting love of a true friend.
i wish i could give you both armfuls of bright flowers right now.

Å olanje na domu-Waldorf said...

Great tutorial! I know what you mean with the pretend games. :) Those were fun days.

foxysue said...

Dear Ana,

Reading your post this morning is a wonderful way to start the day, your memories of childhood and friendship are painted brightly, yes mine was very similar. Your blog posts are so very alive, and convey such energy!

Thanks for sharing, glad to found you. x

Buttons Thoughts said...

Oh what a beautiful tribute to your friend. I love this post it makes me think of my best friend and all we did together. She is still my best friend after 54 years I wish you could have had that but she has left you with truly amazing memories.
This is a very cool movie box.
Take care Hug B

Victoria said...

HUgs..what a super beautiful story and tribute to your amazing friend! Love the tutorial..gorgeous! I could so relate..when you were describing using you imagination while playing..it was like that that for me and my siblings and friends too. we are lucky! Thanks fot his special story..you ahe touched my soul and no doubt you have touched your friend's spirit!
Hugs!
Victoria

Arkansas Patti said...

So sorry you friend left you so early. However it appears she has not left you at all. Her memories and the fun you had is just below the surface. Wonderful tribute.
I agree with this generation and what they are missing. Recently I saw a young lady riding a horse down my road on a beautiful spring day. Instead of enjoying all that was available, the reins hung loose and she was texting. Sigh.

ArtSings1946 said...

Such a beautiful tribute to your friend. My daughter remembers She-Ra and she also had a rich pretend childhood. Technology is good, but people have to learn how to use it. Thanks for this wonderful post.

Happiness Always

Plowing Through Life (Martha) said...

Ana, this was a beautiful tribute to a very special friend. Thank you for sharing it. It sounds like you created wonderful memories together. I'm so sorry about her passing away at such a young age; that is truly tragic.

Debra She Who Seeks said...

A wonderful tribute to your friend! Homemade fun is the best kind, it really is.

Jane said...

So sweet :) I really enjoyed the simple innocence of your story box and the dear memories you shared with us of your friend.

Unknown said...

What a beautiful tribute! So very creative. <3

Unknown said...

What a beautiful tribute! So very creative. <3

alteredstatesstudio said...

such a beautiful story! i love the movie theater! your friend sounded perfect-just the girl to be a best friend with and share your adventures.

Sherri B. said...

This is lovely, and what a beautiful tribute to the memory of your friend. I agree with you that the days of "imaginative playing" seem to be gone for kids. Everything plays out on their electronic gadgets now; that is where their lives are focused. Beautiful post, as always - thank you for sharing with us. :)

Ariel said...

This is a wonderful idea Ana.Think my son will like it. And yes, our childhood days were rich with dreams,imagination and games using handmade or found objects. Now whenever we buy a toy for the kids it needs atleast a minimum of 3 batteries and sadly, Christmas season has just become the synonym of presents.
Susan

Beth said...

Ana,I'm so sorry that you lost your dear friend so early. You are blessed to have such memories of your precious time with her. I really love this movie theater. I did something like this years ago with my children. I think really that our having little money inspired their creativity and sense of the fanciful.

Thank you for this lovely tribute to your friend.

Elena said...

Oh just awesome!!! Love this post. Thank you for sharing your beautiful friend and beautiful you.

Color Correction said...

Nice idea that can be very helpful in terms of story telling specially for kids. They will love to see that kind of theater which can caught their interest thank you for sharing it.

Natasha said...

What a beautiful way to keep your friend's spirit alive and your imagination churning. Thank you for this gift and the gift of you I'm going to create this with my daughter and I'm soooo excited!

Almost Precious said...

Occasionally our lives are touched (or blessed) with someone amazingly special. Someone who helped us create and foster beautiful memories that warm our hearts whenever we reflect back on them. Your childhood best-friend sounds like such an individual, it is sad that she was taken so early in her young life, but I imagine she touched many hearts and in those hearts her memory will live on and on.
Your tribute to her was beautifully touching and heartfelt.

The Movie Theater is a wonderful legacy that she has left behind for you to pass on to many others. I'm sure your readers will share this with their nieces, nephews and, especially, with their own little ones.

Roger said...

Nice art.

Shaharoh said...

Such a beautiful post and a beautiful friendship. I agree with you, imagining things was one of my favorite things to do as a child. Many blessings to your best friend who shared these lovely memories with you and blessings to you for passing it to us.