Monday, December 6, 2010

What do you call a stormtrooper in the snow?

Lost.... apparently.


I didn't grow up with brothers, 
but I had someone in my life that gave me a pretty good taste of what it would have been like to have a brother.

He was the boy two houses down and when our families moved to another town, he became, quite literally, the boy next door.  
We met long before we were old enough to remember meeting, just babies really.
We grew up together, played together, attended all of the same schools together and graduated together.

He had boy toys at his house.
Legos and Hot Wheels and Star Wars figures.
I coveted these toys.
I'd go to his house and ask if I could play with the Hot Wheels.
He'd get a look on his face,
the look that meant that he knew that HE had the power.
(As the youngest of three boys, I imagine that this kind of power was a rare treat for him.)
I'd hold my breath, waiting to see what his whim would be that day.  
Sometimes he would say no and no amount of pleading could change his mind.
Other days we would play until we both decided to move on or until we got into some sort of argument.
(See... just like a brother right?)

One particularly snowy winter, my father shoveled what seemed like tons of snow off of our driveway and into our backyard. 
The snow drift was so big that we decided to make snow caves.  
Two caves side by side with a small hole connecting the two... 
just big enough to pass Star Wars guys through.
We spent hours out there,
Digging, creating and playing with Darth Vader, Luke, Leia, Han Solo and the Stormtroopers.

At the end of the day, we packed up all the toys and brought them into the house.
I don't know exactly when he decided that one of his stormtroopers was missing,
but don't you know that he would blame me for it!
I was convinced of my innocence, but he wouldn't hear of it.  
I was banned from playing with his toys for months.
(Stupid boy!)
Spring came and the snow melted and still there was no sign of the missing stormtrooper.
To this day, I claim innocence.
But I bet, if you asked him, he'd say that I lost his stormtrooper amid the snow.




***this post was written in response to the bigger picture writing prompt, 
lost amid the snow***


Photobucket

16 comments:

Alita said...

Yay!!! Thanks for sharing Colleen. :)

Ok first- do you still talk to him?

Second- Boys toys rock the party. One of my favorite toys was my brothers.

Third- Isn't funny how certain words evoke such vivid memories.

Fourth- May the force be with you!
;)))

Karli @ The Bonnie 5 said...

Oh, I love this! What a special friendship you must have had - that's wonderful! I love brothers!!! I don't have any, but my Tiny Tornado has two, and I think she's the luckiest girl in the world! :-) Happy Monday!

Secret Mom Thoughts said...

Lost indeed! Love the story for the prompt.

suzannah | the smitten word said...

i love this memory lane trip. i never had a friend like that, and all i know are the movie boys-next-door, so i have to wonder, ever the drama a la dawson and joey? ;)

Hyacynth said...

Love the memory this prompt sparked in your mind.

Thanks for sharing this, Colleen. I used to frequently hang out with the boys in my neighborhood, too. And I always got the blame when something broke or was misplaced. Groan. Boys. ;)

Lenae said...

Ha! This made me think of my little boys (I have three), and of the bond my brother and I had growing up.

Marci said...

I totally remember loving my older brothers toys..they held so much intrigue in my eyes! Great story..reminds me of being a kid.

CharityVL said...

Loved this! It totally took me back to childhood - where I had 4 brothers to play with, legos and Star Wars toys too! This was told so well; I could picture it in my mind's eye.

Julie said...

What a cute story!! Whenever the neighbor boy came over to our house, I wanted to wrestle with him. I was the oldest (have younger bro and sis) and they weren't enough of a challenge.

Unknown said...

Ha ha ha! That same thing would happen when I played with my younger brother's toys in the snow. They'd usually turn up in Spring, though. Your story is classic and makes me smile!

Alyssa S. said...

I had a brother and I totally hijacked his Star Wars stuff. You see, had that Stormtrooper had a snow speeder like I did, maybe he wouldn't have gotten lost :) LOVE this!!

For the record, HELLO, they're white, they totally blend! How could he NOT get lost. Now Yoda, he would have been a little harder...Darth Vader too.

CJ said...

Such a fun story. My sister and I always had the boys of the neighborhood playing our games, and with our toys - One year on my sisters birthday - I dont remember a single girl, just boys :) Great memory, thanks for sharing!

Kim @ Kim and Mikey said...

This is such a cute story and a wonderful memory. Thank you for sharing today.

Anonymous said...

What a wonderful childhood memory...I've only experienced snow in my adult years...the first time I saw snow I think I screamed with joy! Thanks for sharing a great story

stormdoerr said...

HAHAHA what a great story!! very funny but for some reason I always thought it was in my yard/driveway??? Hmm ??
Anyways, thanks for the stroll down memory lane and btw YOU DID LOSE MY STORMTROOPER :/ LOL :D but no hard feelings tho.... lol
Good memories of our childhood together!!
Your forever friend, Chris (stormdoerr) ;)

Unknown said...

Star Wars is my life! I grew up with a sister, but have a 6 y/o that LOVES, LOVES, LOVES Star Wars. For Halloween last year, I was Princess Leia, my husband was Darth Vader, my then 5 y/o was a Storm Trooper and my 1 y/o was an Ewok. Ha! Yeah, a missing Storm Trooper is serious business! Sorry he blamed you. :(