Salute to our imaginary friends

Patrick had a problem. No matter where he went or what he did, no one could see him and no one could hear him. He was invisible.

Then one day he met Ellie. Ellie could see him. 
 
“Why do you look so sad?” she asked.
 
And, Ellie could hear him.
 
“Why do you stomp your feet when you walk?”

Patrick became Ellie’s best friend. Where Ellie went, Patrick went. 
 
When Ellie went to school, Patrick went along and helped her learn.  
 
When Ellie went to the beach, Patrick went, too, and they built sandcastles together.
 
And when Ellie was sent to her room for being naughty, Patrick kept her company.

Patrick liked that he wasn’t invisible anymore. And he especially liked that Ellie included him in her play and talked to him. He wasn’t lonely anymore.

It didn’t matter to him that no one but Ellie could see him or hear him. He had Ellie and that was good enough.

But one day, Ellie stopped talking to Patrick. 



She stopped complaining about how noisy Patrick was. She didn’t scold him for not eating his vegetables or for not putting his toys away. 
 
Patrick was lonely again.

But years later, when Ellie was a mom, Patrick came back. Only he had changed his name to Miss Muffin. And he had a new friend -- Ellie’s daughter, Lily.

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Did you have an imaginary friend? If so, what was his/her name?