I have done role playing because I had friends who were really into it (and some still play) but I was really just a visitor – I turned up, played (and enjoyed my self) but I didn’t learn how to run a game, how to be the one responsible, how it all worked. I saw the hours my friends would put into playing and reading the books. I knew some of the lingo, some of the concepts I have even found useful in my life and thinking.. I was so impressed with one friend and his ability to seeming instantly work out percentages. But I never opened one of the books…

It is apparent to me that H and a couple of her friends would really enjoy roleplaying, especially H who would never be into a drama class due to it’s public nature. They enjoy playing at being other characters, think about their character’s back story, and enjoy games of being a character with others. H also, like me, loves plot and how the plot interacts with character. I have told them about role playing and they are so keen. But it is hard to find experts their age and despite our changing world gender is an issue and they are girls. It is also one of those things that attracts people unlike them – those that like a defined structure, rules and an order decided by someone else.

H is so keen about the idea she is making her own game having never even played.

There are also: food, setting, objects, weapons, actions, villains, transport, clothes and something called sets – small and big. There are dice involved. Most the time is spent in the painting of the rocks (which she went all by herself to the beach to get) but this gives her thinking time. She says there will be a booklet to go with the game but she really HATES writing (getting it perfect).. she has to remember stuff rather than writing it down- possibly why her memory muscle is so huge.

So because of her interest I am going to have to do something I will find ever so hard which is learn how to be the ‘dungeon master’ (I think that is what it’s called) just to get them started so they can do it and be the experts and do it better than me. It is the epitome of what I find hard, close reading of something I know is going to go la la la in my head and that is full of details! I can model having to the leg work to reach the goal, learning stuff you don’t really want to learn… but I don’t want to. I guess this is my equivalent of dragging my lazy self out of bed to drive my child to sport on the weekend. I’ll do it to see my child shine. Isn’t that a good reason to learn something.