The girl and boy sat at the top of the hill; hands gripped tightly around the handlebars of each of their bicycles.
They had been double dog dared. They knew this challenge had gone beyond backyard politics. It was a full-on war that they aimed to reign victoriously.
Shoving their bare feet into the loose dirt, they both gave themselves a slight budge at the same time. They were facing down a hill the size of an Indian mound in their minds. The steep angle did not phase them.
They had been double dog dared.
Throwing their fears to the side, they shoved themselves down that hill. The bicycle wheels bounced with every hit of a mole-hole down that grassy hill. The wind shot into their eyes with such force that small tears began to slide down their faces. Down, down, they went.
Until…they crashed into a hole of brown, grassy mud that shot around them so fierce it went up their noses, into their mouths and even in their ears.
They toppled off the bicycles with leaves in their hair and mud covering their entire bodies. Standing up, perhaps for an arrogant stride, they looked to their spectators who stood with their mouths opened in surprise.
They had been double dog dared. And they answered the call.
Those fierce daredevils were my daughter Elsie and son Jase. And that scene played out a few years ago at our old homesite after a good rain. I caught myself thinking back to the day as I watched all three of our kids kicking through the mud at our new house during a recent rain shower. For a moment, I saw those little kids in their eyes as they began kicking mud on each other.
Thanks to a steep hill and the occasional rain shower, an instant slippery slide was hidden in our old backyard. And all three of our children, regardless of age, would head down its hill at any given time.
I would let them spend hours riding their bikes, outdated Big Wheels and more down that treacherous slope of muddy heaven. Mind you, I hosed them down in the backyard before I let them inside sometimes. But for a moment, they were just kids. And it is wonderful.
The iPads, iPhones, game devices, mobile spitters and shakers were forgotten. Their faces were not glued to the glow of a screen.
Their faces were streaked by a mudhole that might as well have been the mighty Mississippi in their eyes.
My family tells the tales of all the dares, challenges and feats met during those mud baths and mudslides. There was no arguing over whose turn it was to have a video game. It was laughter and a little bit of eye rolling as the kids recalled that day.
That good day…when a little mud, a big hill and a double dog dare made a kid be a kid.
And I bet their view at the top of that hill was magnificent. Not a care in the world and a pit of fun waiting at the bottom.
All it took was a little push.
