Teens Can Be Amazing: Who Else Would Put a Lego Man in Space?
Sometimes kids have something that we adults don't have: guts. They aren't always brought down by the what-ifs of a situation and go for it. (This is, of course, a downside of teens as well.)
These two high-schoolers from Toronto are a great example. They decided to send a weather balloon, camera, and a Lego minifigure holding a Canadian flag into the stratosphere just because they wanted to. And so they did and it actually worked. And they have an amazing video to show for it.
How can you not love a video of a Lego man holding a Canadian flag going past the Earth's atmosphere?
And you have to love the spirit, determination and intelligence it took to plan it all.
Not all teenagers can be like this. Not all teenagers would walk up to a kid who didn't speak English and befriend him, like Matthew Ho did (according to this story in the Toronto Star which also has some cool narration on the video). Not all teenagers are inspired at a young age to spend their weekends planning a project for their own interest (and not for school credit).
But I'm glad these two did. First of all, because I get to show my kids what these guys did. And second of all, after all the talk of teenagers on Facebook this week, it is nice to see something that renews my faith in technology and teens. These guys used YouTube and online shopping for good, which doesn't happen too often but it is super-cool when it does.
This puts a smile on my face even more than the teen who sailed around the world single-handedly. She landed in St. Maarten this week a year after she left and just weeks after celebrating her 16th birthday alone on her boat. That kind of daring act scares me because it is about chasing records and cheating death.
Spontaneous Lego men in space? That restores my faith in teens. And as a parent of an almost-teen, that is a very good thing.
Want more chaos? Last year, I posted some good sites where your kids can learn about the news of the day.
« The Ins and Outs of Facebook | Main | I Can't Wait to Share These Books! »
