The Soccer-Playing T-Rex

You had been too quiet for too long when I went to look for you. I found you standing at your parents’ window that overlooked the backyard. I walked over and kneeled next to you. You were so focused on what was going on in the yard that you barely noticed me.

“What are you looking at?” I asked you. I had looked outside and didn’t see anything.

“Kardhu (the family’s golden retriever).” You replied your eyes never leaving the scene you were seeing.

“What is Kardhu doing?” I asked watching you.

“Soccer.” You replied with such conviction that I almost believed it was what you were seeing.

“He’s playing soccer?” I asked. You nod, and then you laugh.

“What’s funny?” I asked him.

“T-rex.” You said as you glance at me with your laughing blue eyes.

My eyes grew wide, and I whispered, “Kardhu is playing with a T-rex?”

You laugh and look at me, your gaze piercing my soul with a curious look as if you were gauging if I was really seeing what you were seeing or not.

“Who’s winning?” I asked you. You think about this for a second before saying, ‘Kardhu is.”

“He is?” I ask. You look at me, and I can tell you want to tell me something, but your words aren’t quite there yet. You shorten your arms like a T-rex and start growling at me.

“Oh because Kardhu has four good legs and T-rex has two?” You nod with such a grin on your face, and you come at me with your T-rex legs, and we dissolve into a fit of giggles on the floor. As I look at you, I can’t believe an almost three-year-old has such an imagination, and I hope it is something you never lose.

Heading to the Kingdom Tomorrow

Dinosaurs. Growing up I had a passing interest in them during grade school but that was about it. I had a few fossils that I thought were really interesting, the idea that they were the remains of creatures that lived millions of years ago excited my nerdy brain. And then in my early 20s all that changed. And it changed because of Stephen Spielberg’s movie “Jurassic Park.” All of a sudden dinosaurs were living, breathing, and moving creatures. I knew they were a combination of computer-generated images and puppets but the skill of the artists took my breath away. They looked as though they could walk right off the screen and into the real world. Even today, that scene where the characters are in jeeps rolling through fields and come to the herd of brontosauruses gives me goosebumps. As does the scene at the end where the larger than life T-Rex roars as the park banner floats gently to the floor.  “Jurassic Park” captured my imagination more than “Star Wars” ever could. The idea of a park where tourists could go and see real dinosaurs just gives me such a thrill. The dinosaurs in every installment have been so incredibly done. Usually, the storyline is very important to me but with this series, I go for the dinosaurs. I remember going to see the last movie and relishing the feeling like I did during the first film. I’m not sure how I feel about the velociraptors behaving like trained dogs but I can overlook that. And now we have a brand new story, “Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom” and I can’t wait to see that. Computer graphics have advanced even more since the last film and I’m anxious to see what new technologies they have developed to make the dinosaurs look even more lifelike. I’m probably going to go see it tomorrow and I’m already preparing myself for the goosebumps I’m going to have the moment composer John Williams’ timeless score begins to play. I just hope the powers behind the film haven’t rushed the creation of it just to cash in on the success of the last film. I’ll let you know what I thought of it tomorrow.