Planet Football by Michelle Robinson
Author Michelle Robinson has written an exciting guest blog for us about “Anything is Possible” and just how that felt when she heard it as a child. She also highlights how imaginative that statement can be in stories!
PLANET FOOTBALL by Michelle Robinson
I still remember how enthralled I was when I first encountered the phrase, ‘Anything is possible.’
I would’ve been pretty young at the time — six, maybe, seven at most. At first I was delighted, truly thrilled by the thought that I could do anything. Anything? Imagine! My wildest dreams could come true.
As a child I was powerless. Every choice and decision was made for me — what I wore, what I had for dinner, what I was expected to do and when I was expected to do it. Is it any wonder I was excited to hear that I had endless, glorious options?
I could fly like a bird! Live in a palace! Turn into an otter at will! I could sprout antlers, eat ice cream for every meal and visit Disney World!
Anything was possible, even all those things my parents said were either too silly, too expensive, too grown up, too difficult, or simply ‘not for the likes of us’. The whole world was wide open. If I could dream it, I could do it — and I was determined to start right away.
I took out pen and paper. I made plans. BIG plans. My plan began with a little stick person standing beside a house. Stick-Me always wore a skirt, something I never did unless forced. As ever, my house was a chunky square, topped with a triangle roof and squat chimney, busily puffing out little, fluffy clouds. I could never resist adding a garden, complete with picket fencing and a cherry tree. It looked absolutely nothing like the estate I lived on, but, hey, anything was possible.
Above Stick-Me I added a wonky moon and a smattering of clumsy stars. Then came the best part — I added a ladder connecting earth and sky, because if anything was possible, by golly, I was going to climb to the moon.
Now, here’s the thing. I was young but I wasn’t stupid. I was cynical enough to know that, ‘Anything is possible’ was not meant to be taken at face value. I’d quickly figured out that, like most promises made by adults, this one had more loopholes than my poorly-laced sneakers.
Then again, what if…? Deep inside, hope bubbled and sparked like magic. I longed to hear a different truth.
There was a slim chance I really could visit the moon. What should I pack, aside from an awful lot of ice cream? I showed my plan to my family, who quickly put me straight. Building a ladder to space simply wasn’t possible.
Of course, I couldn’t do absolutely anything and, of course, my parents couldn’t let me try. It’s a grown up’s job to keep kids in check (I also proposed stepping off a tall building to see if I could fly, like Superman.)
But here’s the thing — it didn’t extinguish my spark of hope.
I’m all grown up myself now. I still only wear skirts in pictures, and I still dream. After all, the impossible might just be worth attempting. It’s in my big, silly, impossible dreams that my stories begin.
Jackson, the hero of Planet Football, manages to kick a ball all the way to the moon. Yes, the premise is rather unlikely, but just imagine…
I haven’t managed to visit the moon yet, like Jackson, but I’m okay with that. I’m still in touch with Stick-Me, and she’s blown away to find herself here — all grown up, a cherry tree in her garden and little fluffy clouds puffing from the chimney, making books with Chris Mould and the team at Walker.
Our world needs boundary-pushers more than ever. I hope Planet Football speaks to the dreamer in you.
Planet Football by Michelle Robinson is published by Walker Books and is available now.
Views expressed do not necessarily reflect those of the Federation.
