The games we played! I'd have my friend for sleep-overs, and we'd play and play and play. I had so many posters of Lord of the Rings, I covered most of my room. I had a subscription for a magazine which I used to cut up so I could have the pictures for my wall. I even wrote 'Lord of the Rings' in glow-in-the-dark paint on my curtain rail. I can still see that. I also remember drawing pictures of all the characters, and I seem to remember we invented one of our own, who was Lady Arwen's daughter. We played wonderful games. We had our own magic carriage to hide in and magic horses (I used to sit on top of my door and my friend on my chest of drawers) and we'd 'ride' and laugh and it was great.2
My mum made me an outfit. It was a green tunic-top, khaki trousers with so many pockets it was unbelievable and a small leather bag with 'lembas bread' in it. She also made me a leather waterbottle, which I thought was beautiful. I still have the whole outfit somewhere, minus the trousers, which got too small. I remember before I got that outfit my friend and I had (rather unsuccessfully) attempted to make cloaks from blue velvet.3
We'd play in the woods for hours on end, wandering, laughing and imagining. I had a little bow, which I think is still around somewhere, and a penknife and I could shoot a little. I remember how much I loved it. 4
We used to practice trying to get around the top of the house without touching the floor, pretending it was a huge river, and we had to get somewhere and if we 'fell in' we'd go back to the start. My mum must have put up with so much. Even before she made the outfit for me, there was a time when I would wear nothing but camoflaged colours, and my walls had hundreds of pictures on them. Every birthday and Christmas I got more things.5
Now, though there are still a few posters, and I have some of our pathetic but beautiful childhood drawings, my room is very different. Letters from friends, more recent drawings, post-cards and school certificates paper my walls, jewellery and a little make-up clutter my shelves and many of my Lord of the Rings ornaments are, very sadly, broken in some way, though I have them still. I gave one of my favourite models, Faramir, to one of my best friends as a present, and I think he was one of the few unbroken ones. I'm still glad I gave it to her, and I hope she liked it.6
I almost wish things were just the same as then, but I hardly even know my friend anymore. She outgrew our games faster than I did, and on the rare occasions she would consent to play with me, I couldn't work my magic anymore. We didn't make our own private dens to watch the films in, we didn't take on our magic roles, we stopped going to the woods. We went to the garage and bought sweets, discussing other things. 7
I'm sad she outgrew it so soon, and sad that now I hardly know her well enough to speak to, but I still have the memories and they are extremely precious to me. She may not have been the best friend in the world but I spent a lot of my childhood with her and although she sometimes made me cry, now I think of it, she more often made me laugh. 8
So, although she is unlikely to ever read this, it's dedicated to you, Rosie, for those magic hours we shared as kids. And it's also dedicated to my friends right now, because we have our own kind of magic, a little different but by no means less fun. My friends have fantastic imaginations and wonderful ideas, brimming with love and laughter. You guys always make me smile and laugh, and this is my thanks to you. So, fond memories of the past, love of the present, and high hopes for the future.
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Adding your comment:
XD. Haha, I like the sound of your spying game too 