Clonetrooper Jack

Christmas is a special time--a time of opening presents and seeing the sparkle in a child's eyes, a time of watching little ones get something they have been wanting for months, a time of watching how creative children can be. Jack has wanted a Clone helmet for years, and every time we went into a store, he began to remind me and grandma just how badly he wanted that toy. Whether it was at a store or in the back seat of the Jetta or Bug, Jack played the role of a Skywalker--either Luke or Anakin. Meanwhile, grandma was always a princess. I was always Obi-Wan. I guess I just look older than grandma. And the blasters he has accumulated over the years also have been very useful after Christmas. It is probably why the house is almost like a vacuum whenever he goes home. The quiet is difficult for grandma and I to enjoy. We prefer to sit in an easy chair, light saber or blaster in hand, fighting duals with our young Jedi.

This new helmet is great, because it gives Jack a chance to speak through a tiny microphone. His little boy voice sounds differently in a galactic sort of way as only Jack and Tommy can do. When that is not enough, Jack pushes a button that automatically makes statements from any number of movies or other Star Wars production.

The game, however, ends for grandpa when Jack decides to use a storeage bin for a spaceship that is about to descend down a staircase. Pop Pop has a coronary. Grandma laughs while taking a picture. And Jack is traumatized by the screams of his Pop Pop before the bin can slide even a millimeter.