by Vaughn Pollman

On our adventures today, we came across the home of the Davies family at 23 Sigfried Sassoon. Around the turn of the 20th century, the children of this home provided the inspiration for J.M. Barrie to write about the world of Neverland. The home, hidden at the top of a treacherous hill with nearby parks green in winter, clearly frame the world which Barrie envisioned so many years ago. 

In nearby Holland Park, the squirrels coexist with pigeons, songbirds, and the most audacious of peacocks. Children play in the most grandiose playground known to man; a modern day Neverland. Words cannot serve justice to this world, although Barrie surely tried.

Our adventures led us to another gem of the world, the Victoria and Albert Museum. From High Renaissance, to the Far East, to the Islamic World, the museum provides one of the best views into the past that I have ever experienced. A lifetime could be spent exploring, and studying, and analyzing all of the collections. Our time here was far too short and we were sadly ripped away form this museum, bound for a hip hop dance presentation of the Pied Piper.

Filled with interpretive battles of the piper overcoming evil forces, the production culminated in the formation of a good army of hip hop dancing children set on bettering the world.

So today I journeyed from fairy world, to the ancient world, and back to the fairy world. All in all, by enjoying the simplicities and complexities of life, I have been reminded that, "I don’t want to grow up," but I am still going to school.