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You're never too old for a little hopscotch.

From what's happening in the world at large to the details of our individual lives, there's a whole lot to worry about on a daily basis. Life can be difficult and people can be complicated, but sometimes the simplest things can remind us that joy is only a step or two away.

For instance, take this woman in Trinidad, Louann Kristy, who transformed people's day with just a piece of chalk and a desire to see people dance. A video shows a woman drawing a classic hopscotch grid on a sidewalk in front of her house, but with a little twist. In the final half-circle, she wrote "DANCE" and just before the first square she wrote "Have fun!" Then she waited for a camera to capture people passing by it.

Sure enough, random pedestrians got to the hopscotch and skipped across it like they probably remember doing as children. And then, when they got to the end, some of them launched into a brief dance, dutifully shimmying and wiggling their hips. Watch:

@louannkristy

Stay tuned! Carnival is coming and that can only mean one thing !! Carnival hopscotch is back 2025 edition! #hopscotch #pavementhopscotch #trinidadandtobago #trini_tiktoks #fyp

It's almost a social experiment of sorts. Who will do the hopscotch and who will walk right over or past it? Who will dance at the end and who will feel too self-conscious? Are people more likely to dance if they're by themselves or with other people? Are the people who dance enjoying themselves more? Would more people or fewer people dance if they knew a camera was on them? Who knows.

What this video does demonstrate is how easy it is to do something that brings childlike joy to people's day, even just for a moment, and the comments show how much other people love seeing it.

"I loved when there were three guys in a row and the guy at the back kind of got stopped and came out the side instead. But then he saw that the end said dance so he did the butt wiggle anyway."

"Humans love a lil butt wiggle."

"It makes me wonder…are we all predestined to wiggle? I need some scientific articles."

"Born to wiggle, forced to walk."


@louannkristy

The last clip is pure energy, so stick around to catch that! And if you’re in Trini, jump in and show us your moves! Hopscotch will be up on Friday until Carnival Tuesday if it survives! 😂 #HopscotchChallenge #TriniVibes #wholesome ##pavementhopscotch #trinidadandtobago #trini_tiktoks #hopscotch

"I loved how the runners seamlessly did it without losing any momentum."

"(Jogger) "Runrunrunrun...OH! HOPSCOTCH! (Bounce bounce bounce) runrunrunrun..."

"Like sleeper agents being woken up to perform their duty."

"I can imagine most of those adults running have a million thoughts going through them either from stress or life in general. Even if it was for a few seconds, seeing this hopscotch made them forget everything there was about being an adult. No stress, just play. Have fun. It's always the little things that bring us the biggest joys in life."


@louannkristy

Who’s ready to jump in and try this? If you spot my hopscotch in Trini, you know what to do! #HopscotchChallenge #GetCreative #trinidadandtobago #trini_tiktoks #fyp #pavementhopscotch #hopscotch #wholesome #LiveOutlandish

It's true, little things like this can literally turn someone's day around and it's not that hard to do. If it's not a hopscotch, maybe it's a sticky note left in a library book or a compliment you pay a stranger. Playfulness can look like a lot of different things, too, from inviting the person sitting next to you on the train to a rock-paper-scissors contest to dancing to the 80s music in the grocery store aisle to leaving a bucket of chalk in front of your house for other people to draw with. It doesn't take much, just a little creativity and willingness to set aside your own self-consciousness. Giving yourself permission to be playful gives other people permission to play also, which is good for everyone's well-being.

As one person wrote, "We need more things like this in the world. Get out there, put the phone away, touch grass, and just enjoy the experience of being alive type things." Indeed, playfulness is a great way to tap into childlike joy and wonder, and all it takes is someone willing to make it happen.

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Ever wish you could live inside your favorite book? You can at this incredible new place.

There's nothing like sharing a book with your kid — except maybe jumping inside one.

Have you ever wanted to just crawl inside your favorite book and stay there for a while?

Probably the best thing about books is the way they create entire worlds inside our minds. All it takes is a flat piece of paper (or maybe a screen) full of images and words and the limitations of the real world suddenly disappear, thrusting you into a new, expansive universe full of endless possibility.

At least, until you come crashing back down to reality. Lame.


But what if you could physically step inside that delightful and dazzling domain? And what if you could bring your friends with you to share in that otherworldly experience?

All images courtesy of The Rabbit hOle, used with permission.

Welcome to the Rabbit hOle! It's not a metaphor — it's a real-life place where you can celebrate children's literature up close.

Soon to be located in Kansas City (which gives a whole new meaning to "We're not in Kansas anymore" since it's actually Missouri), the Rabbit hOle aims to be the world's first "ExploraStorium" — a fun, fresh fusion of bookstore, discovery museum, playground, creative workshop, and interactive theater performance, all in one fantastical location.

(And yes, that capitalization of "Rabbit hOle" is intentionally stylized.)

The goal is to create a national center for the children's book, where retail, workshops, immersive experiences, and special events all coexist in a multi-level building that, well, literally feels like you're walking through a children's book.

An artist's rendering of the Rabbit hOle, which is still in its early planning stages.

"Building experiences around books in a place like the Rabbit hOle reinforces the culture of literature that nourishes the act of reading. That's as simple as it gets," said co-founder Pete Cowdin.

"There are no places where kids can celebrate the culture of books — no places that affirm and inform the activity of reading, libraries notwithstanding. Until we remedy this, we’ll always be struggling with chronic literacy problems among young people."

For more than 20 years before launching this ambitious endeavor, Cowdin and his partner, Debbie Pettid, ran the cherished Kansas City bookstore Reading Reptile. The store was brimming with 3D pop-up displays and life-size papier-mâché cutouts of beloved children's book characters like Captain Underpants, Mike Mulligan, and more. They even took these immersive aspects on tour with them, setting up temporary installations in libraries, community centers, and other storefronts.

But it still wasn't enough to fit their grandest visions.

The Reading Reptile "was forever and always a retail concern, limited by market forces and tethered to commodity culture," Cowdin said. "We had to build something outside of that space."

Enter: the Rabbit hOle.

The "Captain Underpants Pop-Up Pop-Up!" is one of the many magnificent living book installations that Cowdin and Pettid have created over the years — and an omen of what's to come at the Rabbit hOle.

"What's so brilliant about the Rabbit hOle is that it takes this private exchange, this magical forest, and carries it one step further, making it real," said author Brian Selznick.

Selznick is perhaps best known for creating "The Invention of Hugo Cabret," which inspired the award-winning film "Hugo." So he knows a thing or two about immersive experiences.

He's just one of many big-name authors and publishers getting behind the project, including Kate DiCamillo ("Flora and Ulysses"), Jon Scieszka ("The Stinky Cheese Man and Other Fairly Stupid Tales"), Linda Sue Park ("A Single Shard"), and even Daniel Handler, aka Lemony Snicket.

Selznick went on to say, "There's been a lot of excitement in the movie industry regarding 3D movies, but the Rabbit hOle offers us something unique in the literary world: a 3D reading experience."

The interactive aspects of the Rabbit hOle aren't just fun and games. Well OK, they are. But that's exactly why they're great — for everyone, regardless of their age.

"Simply walking into the Rabbit hOle will make age seem irrelevant," Cowdin said. "It’s always been our intention that the Rabbit hOle be a place where kids AND adults come together around books, that the adventure is a shared adventure."

Award-winning author and board member Linda Sue Park added: "I'm thinking of it as multigenerational — as an experience for people of all ages to share. Books connect people through time and across space, and as a museum of the book, the Rabbit hOle will do the same."

That's the best thing about a place like the Rabbit hOle: It reminds us of the value of play.

The simple act of engaging in purposeless fun has been proven to help children and adults alike develop and sharpen problem-solving skills, creativity, relationship building, and so much more. It has a positive impact on the mind as well as the body — and in a modern world where everyone is always on the go, we could all use a good excuse to stop and have some fun.

Opening Day of the Rabbit hOle's first immersive gallery, featuring "The Incredible Painting of Felix Clousseau."

If all goes according to plan, the Rabbit hOle's ExploraStorium will launch in 2019. In the meantime, here's another way to visualize the magic: