Messy Games

Anyone who has kids or works with kids or just hangs around kids has probably observed that kids seem to find great amusement in getting and being "messy." Take a look, for example, at ten-year-old Ian's collection of his favorite Messy Games.

And yet, one finds oneself taken aback, or at least aside, by the discovery of so many adult-sponsored "youth sites" engaged, not only in enthusiastic endorsement for these activities, but also in contributing to their furtherance and proliferation. For proof of this bizarre permissiveness, see the amply illustrated Messy Games Night and More Messy Games. And, for yet more evidence and even more incontrovertibility, see this collection of church-sponsored, tongue-in-cheekily titled "Sick and Twisted Games."

One can but wonder as to the motivation for all this adult-approved child-messiness. One can but shudder with amazement at the theosophical implications of this blatant public church-endorsed messitude, and all but dare to conjecture at the compounding of the "holy mess." One can only wonder if such support is equally given to adult-messiness.

Regardless of the extent of theo-endorsement, one finds oneself mysteriously reassured by such sacred shenanigans, perhaps to the point of restoring one's faith in both religious institutions and the power of play