July 28, 2025 • 21 mins
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In this silly story, a brother and sister try to engage in some imaginary play. Pretending to be a police officer shouldn't be hard, but for Luke, a boy who likes having clear rules to follow, pretending just doesn't come easy. Eve wants to help her brother use his imagination, but in the process, ends up taking things too far. Way too far!
Warning: this goofy story for kids may result in smiles, snorts, and possibly some LOLs. Listen at your own discretion.
To see if the shout-out list is open, visit: lolstorytime.com/shoutouts
Visit lolstorytime.com for merch and other... stuff.
In this silly story, a brother and sister try to engage in some imaginary play. Pretending to be a police officer shouldn't be hard, but for Luke, a boy who likes having clear rules to follow, pretending just doesn't come easy. Eve wants to help her brother use his imagination, but in the process, ends up taking things too far. Way too far!
Warning: this goofy story for kids may result in smiles, snorts, and possibly some LOLs. Listen at your own discretion.
To see if the shout-out list is open, visit: lolstorytime.com/shoutouts
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:01):
Hello, Well story Time really not a glory time, rabbits standing,
You'll be fine. Follow the whole storyline. Hellol story Time?
Might you leave at least one time? Well story Time? Hey,
you're listening to wello well Storytime, the Goofy story podcast
for kids. Today, I have a story called Just Pretend,
(00:21):
featuring two characters named after listeners, Eve and Luke. But
before the other shoutouts, I want to let you know
that all of the Yellowl Storytime merches on sale this
weekend only for a special Midsummer sale. Shirts, stickers, hats,
the whole shebang. That's this week only, August first, second,
and third. All right, big shout out to the following listeners.
(00:42):
Micah Peacock from Tennessee, Emerson and Maddie from Philadelphia, Andrew
and Harrison from Atlanta, Finn listening with his Boston Terrier
Beans in Colorado, Dion, Leora and Milan between Vancouver, BC
and Kirkland, Washington, Liam Backman Mendoz from Brooklyn, New York,
Kyson listening with his mom in Texas, Caleb and Benji
(01:06):
Fick from Bolivia, Connor and Evelyn from Kirkland, Washington. And
Chloe and Ryan from Sweden. More shouts to come next time,
But for now, let's get into the story. This is
(01:26):
the story of how we use our imaginations, something a
girl named Eve enjoyed doing all the time. When Eve played,
she sometimes climbed tall mountains or explored dark caves when
she felt energetic. She traveled to far off planets and galaxies.
And she wasn't just Eve when she played. Sometimes she
was a doctor for unicorns. Other times she was an
(01:48):
evil villain plotting to take over the world. But of course,
all this was only possible because Eve had a wonderful imagination.
She was happy pretending to be whatever her mind treamt up.
Her brother, or Luke, however, played very differently. Luke enjoyed
activities that had rules and procedures. He liked having directions
to follow and guidelines to remember. He never pretended to
(02:10):
be an explorer of strange new worlds in far off galaxies,
though he had once assembled a one thousand piece model
spaceship using a booklet with over seventy pages of step
by step instructions. But because even Luke enjoyed playing very
different things, he'd almost never catch them playing together until
one day when Eve really needed Luke's help. Hey, bro,
(02:30):
since you're not doing anything right now, I need you
to be a police officer in the game I'm playing cool.
Luke wasn't sure why his sister thought he wasn't doing anything. Eve.
I'm in the middle of figuring out how to do
a magic trick. Didn't you see the Magician's handbook I
was reading? Eve didn't believe that reading counted, especially during playtime.
(02:50):
Come on, Bro, say the reading for when our parents
and teachers tell us we have to read. Like, how
can you say no to being a police officer? Luke
looked at his like she had just asked why anyone
would say no to free gold. Probably because I'm not
a police officer. Is that not a good enough reason why?
First I'd have to grow up, then go to police
(03:12):
academy that apply for a job on the police force,
and then learn how to not hate the taste of
coffee while enjoying my donuts. Eve, wish your brother had
a manual to read on how not to be such
a weird brother. Dude, I don't need you to actually
be a police officer. I just need you to pretend
it's not that complicated. Just Hearing the word made Luke
(03:32):
feel uncomfortable pretend, but he was willing to give it
a try, if for no other reason that did not
have to listen to his sister stretch out the word
please for five straight minutes. Thanks brother. Now let's begin.
Mom's diamond necklace has just gone missing, and we need
a clever, sharp witted police detective to help crack the case.
(03:56):
Hearing that, Luke nearly jumped out of his skin. Oh no, oh, no,
Mom's time in necklace. Does mom know about this? She
inherited that necklace from her great grandmother. You've had to
grab her brother's arm to stop him from running off
to report the terrible news to their mother. No, Luke,
nothing has actually happened to mom's necklace. We're pretending. Remember
(04:19):
he felt bad that her brother was now blushing. It's okay, dude,
just try to play along. Okay. Luke tried, but as
much as he wanted to play along, it just wasn't
working out. He didn't have a police badge to show
the bad guys, he couldn't truly dust her fingerprints, and
when he finally figured out who took the necklace, he
was all confused as to why it was his sister, who,
for some unknowing reason, now had a mustache. Luke, I
(04:43):
didn't grow a mustache. I'm just pretending. All of this
is pretend. Maybe we should just try again tomorrow. He
was worried her brother wouldn't want to try again tomorrow.
She wanted to help him, But how do you teach
a person how to pretend? No one had ever taught
her how to pretend. She'd been doing it perfectly for
as long as she could remember. She'd been pretending to
(05:05):
eat her vegetables since she was three. She'd been pretending
to fall asleep when she was actually staying up past
her bedtime, and she'd become a pro at pretending to
read when she was really just daydreaming about doing more
pretending well. The next day, Eve invited her brother to
play again, but not before giving him something first. What
is this, Luke asked, when his sister handed him a package.
(05:28):
Open it up and see. Luke opened the package and
pulled out a uniform, A police uniform. I don't understand,
said Luke. Halloween is in October. It's July right now,
you're like three months early. Eve couldn't believe she needed
to explain, Luke, do you seriously not know why I'm
giving you a police officer costume? Yesterday you kept complaining
(05:52):
that it was hard to act like a police officer
when you didn't feel like a police officer. So now
you can look and feel like a police officer. It
even comes with a badge. Luke tried the uniform on.
It was a little baggy and still very wrinkly from
having been bunched up in the package. He also had
never seen a police officer have to roll up their
extra long sleeves and pant legs, but at least he
(06:13):
felt more official than he did yesterday. Okay, I think
I'm ready to give this a try. Let's pretend. His
enthusiasm quickly went downhill when his sister suggested they play
Cops and Robbers at the park. Come on, Luke, it
won't feel very real if we play in our house.
Luke's face had turned the collar red. But what if
(06:34):
people try giving me candy, you know, because they think
I'm trick or treating. You've made something up about seeing
kids dressed up in costumes practically every day. She then
explained that the game was going to be slightly different
this time. Instead of searching for a missing necklace, Luke
was told he'd be going in pursuit of the saw Queen,
a devious bandit who threatened to plant stinky socks all
(06:55):
over town until her demands of getting five thousand chocolate
bars were met. But why stinky socks? Couldn't the townspeople
just collect all the stinky socks and then put them
in a washing machine. Eve tried to remain calm. Luke,
just pretend this isn't real life, all right? Besides, would
you actually go around picking up someone else's stinky socks?
(07:17):
I mean we're talking about extra stinky socks here, socks
that have never been washed, and the person who wore
them had a foot fungus and did a lot of sweating. Anyway,
just try to catch me, okay. Eve took off, running,
loudly snickering like any good sock dropping villain would do.
At first, Luke didn't make a move. He stood there,
wishing he knew what a real police officer would do.
(07:38):
Call for more police to come, bring in the sock squad,
go after the bad guy on his own. Was it
going to be a problem that he didn't have handcuffs.
Luke started running. Maybe his sister could answer his questions.
He caught up quickly and was soon on her heels.
Stop right there, in the name of the loss sock queen. Also,
(07:59):
I have a few questions I'd like to ask you
about my police duties. Luke turned around after overhearing two
kids argue about the rules to the red light green
light game rules. He blurted out giddily, green light means go, kids,
green light means go. But when Luke turned around, he
noticed his sister had stopped to plant another stinky sock.
(08:21):
He barreled into her, knocking her to the ground. Ah,
that's what he was supposed to do. Your days of
stinking up this tanner over sack, queen, you are under arrest.
Both kids were caught off guard when an elderly woman
sitting on a nearby park bench began clapping, Oh, way
to go, officer, what a hero. I even heard you
(08:43):
directing traffic. At the same time, Luke and Eve walked
over to the woman on the bench. Officer, someone who's
been taking my newspaper straight out of my mailbox before
I've had a chance to read it, And then I
find it in my living room a few hours later.
Do you think you could help me catch who's been
doing it? Luke knew enough about pretending to recognize that
(09:05):
this woman was not pretending. Sorry, I'm not a real
police officer. I was just playing with my sister for
a moment. The woman looked like she didn't believe him.
Oh my, are you seriously not a real police officer?
You look an act just like one, Luke smiled awkwardly. Well,
(09:25):
if that's the truth, then I'd say you were very
good at pretending. You must pretend all the time. You
might even be the world champion of pretending. Eve pushed
herself in front of her brother. But how about that
saw queen? Huh? How about her exceptional pretending? Didn't you
think she was real attacking the city one stinky sock
(09:45):
at a time. The elderly woman rubbed her forehead, looking confused.
You were supposed to be a saw queen didn't look
like it to me. And why stinky socks? Couldn't someone
just pick them up and stick them in a wash machine.
Eve didn't want to admit that she was jealous, but
she was jealous. How would someone told her brother that
(10:07):
he was good at pretending. She was the one who
was good at pretending. She pretended stuff all the time. Listen, lady,
it's your husband. Okay, your husband's been getting to the
mailbox before you. That's what's up with your newspaper. That night,
Eve came up with a plan, not because she was jealous,
and not because she had anything to prove, but because okay, yet,
(10:30):
those were the reasons when she invited her brother to
play the next time, she pulled out a new costume,
but this time the costume was for her to wear.
I need you at the park so we can play
fire and rescue. Eve tried on her new firefighting costume
and showed her brother, So what do you think do
I remind you of a real firefighter? Luke shrugged. Well,
(10:52):
you sure as Wrinkley, And I'm not sure I've ever
seen a firefighter have to roll up so much sleeve.
What is that an extra extral arm borsh Eve regretted,
asking her brother's opinion, it was the last one they had. Okay,
it's hard to find costumes in July. Besides, we're letting
our imaginations fill in the blanks. Just pretend I look
(11:12):
like the real deal. He was happy to see the
park was busy, lots of people to see and perhaps
believe there was an actual firefighter helping out in the park.
All right, Luke tries saying something like help, my pet
bird is stuck in a tree, and then all come
swooping in to save the day. Luke stared blankly at
his sister. What is it this time, Luke? Well, it's
(11:37):
just that. Why a bird shouldn't it be a cat
stuck in the tree. Why wouldn't the bird just fly
out of the tree and then not be stuck in
there anymore? Eve rolled her eyes. Ugh, because he's one
of those birds that doesn't do that. Okay, just pretend.
Using a fairly quiet voice so as not to embarrass
himself in front of the entire park, he called out
(12:00):
for a firefighter to come help rescue his pet bird,
who was somehow stuck in a tree. Oh please, someone
help my bird is for some strange reason choosing not
to use his wings help. Eve ran over. Did someone
just say there's a bird stuck in this tree? Good thing?
You called the fire department. We deal with stuff like
(12:20):
this every day. By now, their little imaginary game had
turned some heads. Eve wondered how many of them were
fooled by thinking she was an actual fire and rescue worker.
Someone called over, hey, kid, did Halloween come early this year?
Another person threw a lollipop at her and yelled trick
her tree. And then, oddly enough, there was someone three
(12:42):
trees over who actually did have a pet stuck in
a tree. Someone, please call the fire department. My cat
is actually stuck in this tree. Then the person loudly added,
and please don't call the kid in the wrinkly suit.
She needs to focus on that imaginary bird. Well, that
didn't feel good to hear she hadn't fooled anyone with
(13:03):
her master pretending skills. Eve sulked the whole way home
and then tried to cheer herself up by eating the
lollipop that had been thrown at her. Luke expected this
was going to be the end of it. His sister
would surely go back to playing imaginary games on her own,
leaving him to go back to playing stuff that actually
made sense, activities where he didn't have to imagine impossible
(13:23):
things like giants sitting on golden toilets floating in the clouds.
He was happy when he saw his sister leave the
house early the next day to go off and imagine.
Who knows what this meant? He got to stay behind
and read, and trust me, none of what he was
reading had anything to do with a brain surgeon in
a wrinkly gown who had yet to even celebrate his
eleventh birthday. Before lunch, Luke heard the phone ring. It
(13:46):
was his sister, bro I need you to meet me
at the park again, and don't worry no pretending this time.
She didn't go into any further detail, but Luke was
curious to know what she was planning that didn't require
him to force his imagination to work. He made his
way to the park, but when he arrived, he couldn't
see his sister anywhere. There were families having picnics, kids
(14:09):
flying kites, people sitting on benches, but no Eve. There
was even a police officer riding on a police horse.
Oh no, thought Luke. That police officer looks awfully similar
to Eve. The officer looked similar to Eve because it
was Eve, and indeed it was an actual police horse
(14:29):
she was sitting on. Her uniform wasn't wrinkled, and in fact,
it didn't look anything like a costume at all. It
looked remarkably close to the real thing. Eve, What are
you doing, Luke asked, Well, I'm definitely not pretending, she answered.
This is a real police horse, a real police uniform.
Can't believe they had a size that fit me, and
(14:50):
I even have a real police badge. What Luke really
wanted to know was why, Well, let's be honest, Luke,
you've been having a hard time. I don't care what
that old lady said, and so this way, we don't
have to pretend I'm an actual police officer now and
you are someone who has an actual problem and needs
a real police officer's help. Well, she wasn't wrong there.
(15:13):
He actually did have a problem, a very big problem.
His sister had lost her mind. Eve had gone to
the police station that morning to ask if she could
borrow a more official and less wrinkly uniform, but it
had been hard to get anyone's attention. Everyone at the
station was either busy rushing this way or hurrying off
that way, without anyone to answer her questions. She helped
(15:33):
herself to a uniform, but then on her way out,
she saw a police horse that was also not getting
any attention. Well, you might as well. Just come with me, then,
she had said to the horse. No one said anything.
When you look like a police officer, people just assume
you're already doing what you're supposed to be doing. Eve,
you have to bring that horse back to the station.
(15:54):
It seemed weird to Eve that she would bring the
horse back now, when they hadn't even begun playing yet. Besides,
switching to a police car would be so much harder. Relax, mister,
let's end the game before we've even started. Okay, now
call me with a real emergency. Before Luke could put
his foot down and demand his sister returned the horse,
they heard a scream from somewhere in the park. Help
(16:17):
call the police. Someone just ran off with my purse.
Oh yeah, said Eve, that's us, bro, we're the police.
Looking ahead down one of the paths, the kids saw
the person with the purse making a run for it.
Hop on, Luke, we've got a bad guy to catch.
Luke just stood there. Eve. You have got to be
(16:38):
kidding me. You and I are not the police. We're
probably the last people in this park who should be
cheasing after a thief. Luke could tell his sister was
about to leave with or without him. Okay, fine, but
just know I'm really not okay with this, Eve told
her brother. She was just gonna pretend he was okay
with this. The police horse took off, galloping in the
(16:58):
direction of the bad guy. He was quick, but not
as quick as the horse. As if sensing he was
being chased, the thief made a sudden change in direction
and tore off down a different path. Having only ever
ridden a pony at her friend's birthday party, Eve wasn't
the best when it came to steering the horse, and
this path was much busier. Eve made the horse come
to a stop. We'll have to go the rest of
(17:20):
the way on foot. Follow me. Getting into a slow
speed police chase was not what Luke had pictured he'd
be doing that day, and yet here he was pushing
people out of the way and shouting official police business.
Step aside everyone. The two of them were panting and
out of breath by the time they finally caught up
to the thief and tackled him to the ground. But
now Eve didn't know what to do. It suddenly hit
(17:42):
her that they weren't just pretending any more. Luke, of
all people, knew exactly what to do. You have the
right to remain silent. Anything you say ken and will
be used against you in a court of law. You
have the right to an attorney, and if you cannot
afford an attorney, one will be appointed to you. Do
you understand was in awe? Did her brother just correctly
(18:02):
read the thief? As Miranda writes, Luke was sounding like
an official police officer. Now, bro, I am so proud
of you. How did you know what to say? Luke shrugged,
and I spent a bit of time studying the Police
Academy handbook when I was trying to get better at
pretending how to be an officer. Just then the thief
spoke up, what does attorney mean? The kids were shocked
(18:27):
to discover that the thief was a kid. Hey, get
your hands off, my brother shouted, another kid from behind them.
What are you guys even doing? Eve began stammering, well, uh,
you see, uh, we are police officers trying to catch
a purse thief. But I guess we have the wrong person.
The thief's older sister kept shaking her head. No, that
(18:50):
was us, but we were pretending he stole my purse.
See for yourself. He's holding my old lunch bag. You
won't find any money in there. You guys, on the
other hand, are clearly pretending too hard. The horse, the uniform,
What do you think this is Halloween? Keep the pretending
to what you can imagine. Okay, the girl was right.
Eve had gone way overboard. Who uses an actual police
(19:13):
horse when pretending to be a police officer. Not only
was Eve more embarrassed than she'd ever felt in her
entire life, but now she had ruined imaginary play for
her brother. There was no way he'd ever want to
play with her again, not that she was available to play. Apparently,
taking a police horse without asking lands you in a
lot of trouble. Eve was grounded for the rest of
(19:33):
the week, but that gave Luke plenty of time to
happily work away on a rule book he was creating.
Then one day the following week, Luke showed up at
East bedroom and asked her if she wanted to play
like a board game with instructions and all that. Eve
figured she owed it to her brother to give it
a try. Actually, I was thinking it might be fun
(19:53):
if we tried pretending we were brain surgeons. Luke handed
something to his sister. She read the cover the Imaginary
Play Handbook Guidelines and Rules for Pretending. She waited for
her brother to explain, I think I was just finally
starting to enjoy the whole pretending thing. Like when I
was reading that pretend bad guy his rights felt kind
(20:15):
of fun because I knew what I was supposed to do.
So that's why I created some rules for pretending. Eve
began leaving through the book. Some of the rules made
her roll her eyes, like the one requiring you to
iron any costumes with wrinkles, but there were also some
guidelines she really liked, like the one that said if
player one says there's the bird stuck in a tree,
(20:35):
even though the bird is perfectly capable of flying, then
just try to roll with it. It's only pretend after all.
The end, that's the story. And here's your question of
the week. Do you lean toward activities that rely on
your imagination or do you prefer something with a little
(20:56):
more structure. Well that's all for this week episode. Don't
forget to grab yourself an la Well storytime coffee monk
this weekend, and I'll catch you on the next one.
Hello, Well story Time really not a glory time, rabbits standing,
You'll be fine. Follow the whole storyline. Hellol story Time?
Might you leave at least one time? Well story Time? Hey,
you're listening to wello well Storytime, the Goofy story podcast
for kids. Today, I have a story called Just Pretend,
(00:21):
featuring two characters named after listeners, Eve and Luke. But
before the other shoutouts, I want to let you know
that all of the Yellowl Storytime merches on sale this
weekend only for a special Midsummer sale. Shirts, stickers, hats,
the whole shebang. That's this week only, August first, second,
and third. All right, big shout out to the following listeners.
(00:42):
Micah Peacock from Tennessee, Emerson and Maddie from Philadelphia, Andrew
and Harrison from Atlanta, Finn listening with his Boston Terrier
Beans in Colorado, Dion, Leora and Milan between Vancouver, BC
and Kirkland, Washington, Liam Backman Mendoz from Brooklyn, New York,
Kyson listening with his mom in Texas, Caleb and Benji
(01:06):
Fick from Bolivia, Connor and Evelyn from Kirkland, Washington. And
Chloe and Ryan from Sweden. More shouts to come next time,
But for now, let's get into the story. This is
(01:26):
the story of how we use our imaginations, something a
girl named Eve enjoyed doing all the time. When Eve played,
she sometimes climbed tall mountains or explored dark caves when
she felt energetic. She traveled to far off planets and galaxies.
And she wasn't just Eve when she played. Sometimes she
was a doctor for unicorns. Other times she was an
(01:48):
evil villain plotting to take over the world. But of course,
all this was only possible because Eve had a wonderful imagination.
She was happy pretending to be whatever her mind treamt up.
Her brother, or Luke, however, played very differently. Luke enjoyed
activities that had rules and procedures. He liked having directions
to follow and guidelines to remember. He never pretended to
(02:10):
be an explorer of strange new worlds in far off galaxies,
though he had once assembled a one thousand piece model
spaceship using a booklet with over seventy pages of step
by step instructions. But because even Luke enjoyed playing very
different things, he'd almost never catch them playing together until
one day when Eve really needed Luke's help. Hey, bro,
(02:30):
since you're not doing anything right now, I need you
to be a police officer in the game I'm playing cool.
Luke wasn't sure why his sister thought he wasn't doing anything. Eve.
I'm in the middle of figuring out how to do
a magic trick. Didn't you see the Magician's handbook I
was reading? Eve didn't believe that reading counted, especially during playtime.
(02:50):
Come on, Bro, say the reading for when our parents
and teachers tell us we have to read. Like, how
can you say no to being a police officer? Luke
looked at his like she had just asked why anyone
would say no to free gold. Probably because I'm not
a police officer. Is that not a good enough reason why?
First I'd have to grow up, then go to police
(03:12):
academy that apply for a job on the police force,
and then learn how to not hate the taste of
coffee while enjoying my donuts. Eve, wish your brother had
a manual to read on how not to be such
a weird brother. Dude, I don't need you to actually
be a police officer. I just need you to pretend
it's not that complicated. Just Hearing the word made Luke
(03:32):
feel uncomfortable pretend, but he was willing to give it
a try, if for no other reason that did not
have to listen to his sister stretch out the word
please for five straight minutes. Thanks brother. Now let's begin.
Mom's diamond necklace has just gone missing, and we need
a clever, sharp witted police detective to help crack the case.
(03:56):
Hearing that, Luke nearly jumped out of his skin. Oh no, oh, no,
Mom's time in necklace. Does mom know about this? She
inherited that necklace from her great grandmother. You've had to
grab her brother's arm to stop him from running off
to report the terrible news to their mother. No, Luke,
nothing has actually happened to mom's necklace. We're pretending. Remember
(04:19):
he felt bad that her brother was now blushing. It's okay, dude,
just try to play along. Okay. Luke tried, but as
much as he wanted to play along, it just wasn't
working out. He didn't have a police badge to show
the bad guys, he couldn't truly dust her fingerprints, and
when he finally figured out who took the necklace, he
was all confused as to why it was his sister, who,
for some unknowing reason, now had a mustache. Luke, I
(04:43):
didn't grow a mustache. I'm just pretending. All of this
is pretend. Maybe we should just try again tomorrow. He
was worried her brother wouldn't want to try again tomorrow.
She wanted to help him, But how do you teach
a person how to pretend? No one had ever taught
her how to pretend. She'd been doing it perfectly for
as long as she could remember. She'd been pretending to
(05:05):
eat her vegetables since she was three. She'd been pretending
to fall asleep when she was actually staying up past
her bedtime, and she'd become a pro at pretending to
read when she was really just daydreaming about doing more
pretending well. The next day, Eve invited her brother to
play again, but not before giving him something first. What
is this, Luke asked, when his sister handed him a package.
(05:28):
Open it up and see. Luke opened the package and
pulled out a uniform, A police uniform. I don't understand,
said Luke. Halloween is in October. It's July right now,
you're like three months early. Eve couldn't believe she needed
to explain, Luke, do you seriously not know why I'm
giving you a police officer costume? Yesterday you kept complaining
(05:52):
that it was hard to act like a police officer
when you didn't feel like a police officer. So now
you can look and feel like a police officer. It
even comes with a badge. Luke tried the uniform on.
It was a little baggy and still very wrinkly from
having been bunched up in the package. He also had
never seen a police officer have to roll up their
extra long sleeves and pant legs, but at least he
(06:13):
felt more official than he did yesterday. Okay, I think
I'm ready to give this a try. Let's pretend. His
enthusiasm quickly went downhill when his sister suggested they play
Cops and Robbers at the park. Come on, Luke, it
won't feel very real if we play in our house.
Luke's face had turned the collar red. But what if
(06:34):
people try giving me candy, you know, because they think
I'm trick or treating. You've made something up about seeing
kids dressed up in costumes practically every day. She then
explained that the game was going to be slightly different
this time. Instead of searching for a missing necklace, Luke
was told he'd be going in pursuit of the saw Queen,
a devious bandit who threatened to plant stinky socks all
(06:55):
over town until her demands of getting five thousand chocolate
bars were met. But why stinky socks? Couldn't the townspeople
just collect all the stinky socks and then put them
in a washing machine. Eve tried to remain calm. Luke,
just pretend this isn't real life, all right? Besides, would
you actually go around picking up someone else's stinky socks?
(07:17):
I mean we're talking about extra stinky socks here, socks
that have never been washed, and the person who wore
them had a foot fungus and did a lot of sweating. Anyway,
just try to catch me, okay. Eve took off, running,
loudly snickering like any good sock dropping villain would do.
At first, Luke didn't make a move. He stood there,
wishing he knew what a real police officer would do.
(07:38):
Call for more police to come, bring in the sock squad,
go after the bad guy on his own. Was it
going to be a problem that he didn't have handcuffs.
Luke started running. Maybe his sister could answer his questions.
He caught up quickly and was soon on her heels.
Stop right there, in the name of the loss sock queen. Also,
(07:59):
I have a few questions I'd like to ask you
about my police duties. Luke turned around after overhearing two
kids argue about the rules to the red light green
light game rules. He blurted out giddily, green light means go, kids,
green light means go. But when Luke turned around, he
noticed his sister had stopped to plant another stinky sock.
(08:21):
He barreled into her, knocking her to the ground. Ah,
that's what he was supposed to do. Your days of
stinking up this tanner over sack, queen, you are under arrest.
Both kids were caught off guard when an elderly woman
sitting on a nearby park bench began clapping, Oh, way
to go, officer, what a hero. I even heard you
(08:43):
directing traffic. At the same time, Luke and Eve walked
over to the woman on the bench. Officer, someone who's
been taking my newspaper straight out of my mailbox before
I've had a chance to read it, And then I
find it in my living room a few hours later.
Do you think you could help me catch who's been
doing it? Luke knew enough about pretending to recognize that
(09:05):
this woman was not pretending. Sorry, I'm not a real
police officer. I was just playing with my sister for
a moment. The woman looked like she didn't believe him.
Oh my, are you seriously not a real police officer?
You look an act just like one, Luke smiled awkwardly. Well,
(09:25):
if that's the truth, then I'd say you were very
good at pretending. You must pretend all the time. You
might even be the world champion of pretending. Eve pushed
herself in front of her brother. But how about that
saw queen? Huh? How about her exceptional pretending? Didn't you
think she was real attacking the city one stinky sock
(09:45):
at a time. The elderly woman rubbed her forehead, looking confused.
You were supposed to be a saw queen didn't look
like it to me. And why stinky socks? Couldn't someone
just pick them up and stick them in a wash machine.
Eve didn't want to admit that she was jealous, but
she was jealous. How would someone told her brother that
(10:07):
he was good at pretending. She was the one who
was good at pretending. She pretended stuff all the time. Listen, lady,
it's your husband. Okay, your husband's been getting to the
mailbox before you. That's what's up with your newspaper. That night,
Eve came up with a plan, not because she was jealous,
and not because she had anything to prove, but because okay, yet,
(10:30):
those were the reasons when she invited her brother to
play the next time, she pulled out a new costume,
but this time the costume was for her to wear.
I need you at the park so we can play
fire and rescue. Eve tried on her new firefighting costume
and showed her brother, So what do you think do
I remind you of a real firefighter? Luke shrugged. Well,
(10:52):
you sure as Wrinkley, And I'm not sure I've ever
seen a firefighter have to roll up so much sleeve.
What is that an extra extral arm borsh Eve regretted,
asking her brother's opinion, it was the last one they had. Okay,
it's hard to find costumes in July. Besides, we're letting
our imaginations fill in the blanks. Just pretend I look
(11:12):
like the real deal. He was happy to see the
park was busy, lots of people to see and perhaps
believe there was an actual firefighter helping out in the park.
All right, Luke tries saying something like help, my pet
bird is stuck in a tree, and then all come
swooping in to save the day. Luke stared blankly at
his sister. What is it this time, Luke? Well, it's
(11:37):
just that. Why a bird shouldn't it be a cat
stuck in the tree. Why wouldn't the bird just fly
out of the tree and then not be stuck in
there anymore? Eve rolled her eyes. Ugh, because he's one
of those birds that doesn't do that. Okay, just pretend.
Using a fairly quiet voice so as not to embarrass
himself in front of the entire park, he called out
(12:00):
for a firefighter to come help rescue his pet bird,
who was somehow stuck in a tree. Oh please, someone
help my bird is for some strange reason choosing not
to use his wings help. Eve ran over. Did someone
just say there's a bird stuck in this tree? Good thing?
You called the fire department. We deal with stuff like
(12:20):
this every day. By now, their little imaginary game had
turned some heads. Eve wondered how many of them were
fooled by thinking she was an actual fire and rescue worker.
Someone called over, hey, kid, did Halloween come early this year?
Another person threw a lollipop at her and yelled trick
her tree. And then, oddly enough, there was someone three
(12:42):
trees over who actually did have a pet stuck in
a tree. Someone, please call the fire department. My cat
is actually stuck in this tree. Then the person loudly added,
and please don't call the kid in the wrinkly suit.
She needs to focus on that imaginary bird. Well, that
didn't feel good to hear she hadn't fooled anyone with
(13:03):
her master pretending skills. Eve sulked the whole way home
and then tried to cheer herself up by eating the
lollipop that had been thrown at her. Luke expected this
was going to be the end of it. His sister
would surely go back to playing imaginary games on her own,
leaving him to go back to playing stuff that actually
made sense, activities where he didn't have to imagine impossible
(13:23):
things like giants sitting on golden toilets floating in the clouds.
He was happy when he saw his sister leave the
house early the next day to go off and imagine.
Who knows what this meant? He got to stay behind
and read, and trust me, none of what he was
reading had anything to do with a brain surgeon in
a wrinkly gown who had yet to even celebrate his
eleventh birthday. Before lunch, Luke heard the phone ring. It
(13:46):
was his sister, bro I need you to meet me
at the park again, and don't worry no pretending this time.
She didn't go into any further detail, but Luke was
curious to know what she was planning that didn't require
him to force his imagination to work. He made his
way to the park, but when he arrived, he couldn't
see his sister anywhere. There were families having picnics, kids
(14:09):
flying kites, people sitting on benches, but no Eve. There
was even a police officer riding on a police horse.
Oh no, thought Luke. That police officer looks awfully similar
to Eve. The officer looked similar to Eve because it
was Eve, and indeed it was an actual police horse
(14:29):
she was sitting on. Her uniform wasn't wrinkled, and in fact,
it didn't look anything like a costume at all. It
looked remarkably close to the real thing. Eve, What are
you doing, Luke asked, Well, I'm definitely not pretending, she answered.
This is a real police horse, a real police uniform.
Can't believe they had a size that fit me, and
(14:50):
I even have a real police badge. What Luke really
wanted to know was why, Well, let's be honest, Luke,
you've been having a hard time. I don't care what
that old lady said, and so this way, we don't
have to pretend I'm an actual police officer now and
you are someone who has an actual problem and needs
a real police officer's help. Well, she wasn't wrong there.
(15:13):
He actually did have a problem, a very big problem.
His sister had lost her mind. Eve had gone to
the police station that morning to ask if she could
borrow a more official and less wrinkly uniform, but it
had been hard to get anyone's attention. Everyone at the
station was either busy rushing this way or hurrying off
that way, without anyone to answer her questions. She helped
(15:33):
herself to a uniform, but then on her way out,
she saw a police horse that was also not getting
any attention. Well, you might as well. Just come with me, then,
she had said to the horse. No one said anything.
When you look like a police officer, people just assume
you're already doing what you're supposed to be doing. Eve,
you have to bring that horse back to the station.
(15:54):
It seemed weird to Eve that she would bring the
horse back now, when they hadn't even begun playing yet. Besides,
switching to a police car would be so much harder. Relax, mister,
let's end the game before we've even started. Okay, now
call me with a real emergency. Before Luke could put
his foot down and demand his sister returned the horse,
they heard a scream from somewhere in the park. Help
(16:17):
call the police. Someone just ran off with my purse.
Oh yeah, said Eve, that's us, bro, we're the police.
Looking ahead down one of the paths, the kids saw
the person with the purse making a run for it.
Hop on, Luke, we've got a bad guy to catch.
Luke just stood there. Eve. You have got to be
(16:38):
kidding me. You and I are not the police. We're
probably the last people in this park who should be
cheasing after a thief. Luke could tell his sister was
about to leave with or without him. Okay, fine, but
just know I'm really not okay with this, Eve told
her brother. She was just gonna pretend he was okay
with this. The police horse took off, galloping in the
(16:58):
direction of the bad guy. He was quick, but not
as quick as the horse. As if sensing he was
being chased, the thief made a sudden change in direction
and tore off down a different path. Having only ever
ridden a pony at her friend's birthday party, Eve wasn't
the best when it came to steering the horse, and
this path was much busier. Eve made the horse come
to a stop. We'll have to go the rest of
(17:20):
the way on foot. Follow me. Getting into a slow
speed police chase was not what Luke had pictured he'd
be doing that day, and yet here he was pushing
people out of the way and shouting official police business.
Step aside everyone. The two of them were panting and
out of breath by the time they finally caught up
to the thief and tackled him to the ground. But
now Eve didn't know what to do. It suddenly hit
(17:42):
her that they weren't just pretending any more. Luke, of
all people, knew exactly what to do. You have the
right to remain silent. Anything you say ken and will
be used against you in a court of law. You
have the right to an attorney, and if you cannot
afford an attorney, one will be appointed to you. Do
you understand was in awe? Did her brother just correctly
(18:02):
read the thief? As Miranda writes, Luke was sounding like
an official police officer. Now, bro, I am so proud
of you. How did you know what to say? Luke shrugged,
and I spent a bit of time studying the Police
Academy handbook when I was trying to get better at
pretending how to be an officer. Just then the thief
spoke up, what does attorney mean? The kids were shocked
(18:27):
to discover that the thief was a kid. Hey, get
your hands off, my brother shouted, another kid from behind them.
What are you guys even doing? Eve began stammering, well, uh,
you see, uh, we are police officers trying to catch
a purse thief. But I guess we have the wrong person.
The thief's older sister kept shaking her head. No, that
(18:50):
was us, but we were pretending he stole my purse.
See for yourself. He's holding my old lunch bag. You
won't find any money in there. You guys, on the
other hand, are clearly pretending too hard. The horse, the uniform,
What do you think this is Halloween? Keep the pretending
to what you can imagine. Okay, the girl was right.
Eve had gone way overboard. Who uses an actual police
(19:13):
horse when pretending to be a police officer. Not only
was Eve more embarrassed than she'd ever felt in her
entire life, but now she had ruined imaginary play for
her brother. There was no way he'd ever want to
play with her again, not that she was available to play. Apparently,
taking a police horse without asking lands you in a
lot of trouble. Eve was grounded for the rest of
(19:33):
the week, but that gave Luke plenty of time to
happily work away on a rule book he was creating.
Then one day the following week, Luke showed up at
East bedroom and asked her if she wanted to play
like a board game with instructions and all that. Eve
figured she owed it to her brother to give it
a try. Actually, I was thinking it might be fun
(19:53):
if we tried pretending we were brain surgeons. Luke handed
something to his sister. She read the cover the Imaginary
Play Handbook Guidelines and Rules for Pretending. She waited for
her brother to explain, I think I was just finally
starting to enjoy the whole pretending thing. Like when I
was reading that pretend bad guy his rights felt kind
(20:15):
of fun because I knew what I was supposed to do.
So that's why I created some rules for pretending. Eve
began leaving through the book. Some of the rules made
her roll her eyes, like the one requiring you to
iron any costumes with wrinkles, but there were also some
guidelines she really liked, like the one that said if
player one says there's the bird stuck in a tree,
(20:35):
even though the bird is perfectly capable of flying, then
just try to roll with it. It's only pretend after all.
The end, that's the story. And here's your question of
the week. Do you lean toward activities that rely on
your imagination or do you prefer something with a little
(20:56):
more structure. Well that's all for this week episode. Don't
forget to grab yourself an la Well storytime coffee monk
this weekend, and I'll catch you on the next one.
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