I dropped my younger son off at his school on Friday and watched the parade of children in costume arriving. There were smiles all around. I watched a girl get out of a car in a very clever homemade cow costume. She was beaming! There were princesses (of course) and many ghoulish bloodied figures. The teachers were dressed up too, and the whole thing had a happy, festive atmosphere.

Dressing up is so much fun!

The "princess" in this photo is actually my older son. But that's what you get when you have three older sisters who like dressing you up!

Dressing up is a fun way for a child to live a little more into their imagination. I remember when I  was little and my mom sewed me a devil costume. I remember the adults were clearly amused, but I also remember that in my own head, I felt pretty cool dressed up like that. That’s the imagination at work. We just see the outside when we see a child dressed up, but on the inside they are pretending, often with rich imagination, that they are something different. Besides being a lot of fun, that creative energy is great for young developing minds. I’m convinced that more creativity in our youth makes for better bankers, engineers, and police officers later on.

Fearsome pirate? Nah! It's just my son and his cousin playing in the backyard.

The son in these photos turned 18 today. He doesn’t dress up anymore, but he has a fine mind, and I have not doubt that years of vigorous play have a lot to do with that.

Hope you had a Happy Halloween!

Eric