Zoo for You
March 8, 2023 – Salt Lake City, Utah, USA
A male lion posed on a rock outcropping, shook his mane, and roared. The bone-rattling sound echoed off the walls of the exhibit. An instinctive terror shot through zoo visitors. No matter how far away they stood, they took an unconscious step or two backward. The only onlooker who did not seem afraid was six-year-old Ryker Stott.
Bundled up in a coat and mittens, Ryker kept his eyes on the lion without flinching. His grandpa leaned down to him and said, “Pretty loud, huh?”
“Not as loud as a whale underwater,” Ryker replied matter-of-factly.
“Is that right? Your mom told me you know a lot about animals. What’s your favorite?”
“I like a lot of them.”
“How about lions?”
“I like lions. But those ones aren’t real.” Ryker kept his eyes on the family of lions in the enclosure in front of him.
His grandpa chuckled. “They look real to me.”
“No, they’re only robots covered in hair.”
Ryker’s mother, grandma, and little sister were looking on nearby and were close enough to hear the conversation. Grandpa gave Ryker’s mom a questioning look. She smiled in return and shrugged her shoulders.
“Ryker, why do you think they’re robots?” Grandpa asked with a serious voice.
“Real animals would be afraid of us,” Ryker instantly replied. “Those animals don’t look afraid. They’re moving around like they don’t know we’re here.”
“Who told you that?”
“Nobody. I figured it out.”
As the family moved toward the next exhibit, Grandpa waited until Ryker was out of hearing range. Then he asked his mother, “Where did he come up with the robot idea?”
“He watches a lot of nature videos. He must have heard something about animals avoiding humans and playing dead when people are around. He’s a thinker. He put two and two together.”
“Don’t you think it’s a little strange for him to believe something like that?”
“I think it’s cute. All six-year-olds have weird ideas. I just play along.”
When the family stopped to look at orangutangs and monkeys, Grandpa asked Ryker if those animals were also robots.
“Yes, you can tell by the way they jump,” Ryker answered. “If you want to see real animals, we can go to the real zoo close to our house.”
“He’s talking about the Bean Museum,” Ryker’s mother interjected, after hearing Ryker’s answer. “We go there a lot.”
“They don’t have any robots. All their animals are real,” Ryker insisted.
After two hours of walking in the chilly weather, Ryker complained that his feet were tired. His mom offered to let him ride in the stroller while one of the adults carried his sister, but Ryker though he was too big for a stroller.
“It’s probably time we headed home. I think that’s about all of the zoo these kids can handle,” Ryker’s mom announced.
The family took the shortest route to the exit and loaded into their car. Ryker’s mom did the driving, with Grandpa in the front passenger seat. Grandma and the two kids sat in back.
“We should be home in about 45 minutes,” Ryker’s mom said.
“I had fun. I liked that zoo,” Grandpa said.
“We’ll have to think of something else fun to do tomorrow,” Ryker’s mom replied.
“You don’t have to entertain us. We’re happy to join in your regular routine,” Grandpa said.
“He’s right,” Grandma called from the backseat. “We don’t want our coming to stay with you for a week to feel more like a month. I wish you’d pretend we weren’t around and go about your everyday business.”
“Not to say we don’t appreciate it, but no need to go so far out of your way for us,” Grandpa added.
“It’s not a big deal,” Ryker’s mom said with a wave of her hand. “It’s nice to get out of the house.”
Ryker had been listening carefully next to Grandma. He waited for the perfect opening before asking, “What are we doing tomorrow, Mom?”
“Well, you have kindergarten in the morning,” his mom replied.
“I mean after that.”
“I don’t know yet. That’s kind of what I’m talking about with your grandpa and grandma.”
“Let’s go to the real zoo.”
“He’s talking about the Bean Museum again,” Ryker’s mom explained to his grandparents.
“Two zoos in two days? That seems like a lot of trouble for you,” Ryker’s grandpa said to his mom.
She chuckled in reply. “The Bean Museum is free and very close to our house. Not a lot of trouble at all. And it’s inside, so we don’t have to worry about getting cold.”
“I’m up for going if you really don’t mind,” Grandpa said.
“Then we’ll go tomorrow after kindergarten,” Ryker’s mom concluded.
Ryker cheered from the backseat.
Further details about the upcoming Bean Museum trip were ignored when Ryker’s mom turned on some silly songs to enjoy for the rest of the car ride. Then came the chaos of dinner preparation followed by a bedtime routine. Ryker’s mom did not find a chance to explain more about the Bean Museum until she and his grandparents were on their way to retrieve Ryker from kindergarten the next day.
“So, it’s all in one building. They have lots of displays of stuffed animals in their natural habitat.”
“Oh, you mean stuffed animals like taxidermy specimens,” Grandpa said.
Ryker’s mom chuckled. “Yes. They were once alive but now they’re just skins covering a shell. It’s not like a bunch of toy stuffed animals. Although I could see Ryker liking a room full of teddy bears if they had one.”
“Where did this place get their animals?” Grandpa asked.
“I don’t pay close attention. For me, it’s simply a nice place to walk around when the weather’s bad.”
From Ryker’s school, the family drove directly to the Bean Museum. Ryker was eager to show his grandparents around the three-story building. They walked into the tall lobby and Ryker led his grandpa to a display of African animals. The display included a family of lions stalking wildebeests and gazelles in the grasslands of a savannah.
“They moved since the last time we were here,” Ryker said, pointing at the lions. “Look, Mom. The last time the lions were farther away.”
“Uh huh. I see,” Ryker’s mom replied absentmindedly.
“They can see us,” Ryker said to his grandpa. “That’s why they aren’t moving now.”
“Is that right?” Grandpa replied.
“That’s how you know these lions aren’t robots. They’re scared of us. But they move when people aren’t around.”
Grandpa turned toward Ryker’s mom with a skeptical, puzzled look. She smiled and said, “It makes sense. The wild animals in the videos Ryker watches freeze whenever they sense danger.”
“I like how close we can get to them,” Ryker added. He stood against the rope separating the exhibit from the walking path. The closest lions were only a few feet away. “Now let’s go look at the moose!” Ryker cried excitedly.
Ryker led the family around a tour of the exhibits, which highlighted animals from different parts of the world. In the North American display, Ryker pointed out how you could see more than twenty-five animals without walking very far. While Grandpa nodded in appreciation, he still wore the same disturbed look he put on when Ryker talked about the lions.
The tour finished in a play area designed for small kids. Ryker and his sister ran through a plastic treehouse and called for their mom to watch every time they slid down the spiral slide. The adults looked on from a conveniently located bench.
“They would probably do that the rest of the day if we let them,” Ryker’s mom said, as her kids climbed up the slide’s ladder.
“Fun place to be when you’re that age,” Grandpa said. “But I’m a little worried about Ryker’s perception of reality. How he thinks the animals in here are alive and the ones at the zoo are robots.”
Ryker’s mom laughed. “I think it’s cute how he’s using his imagination.”
“Using your imagination is fine, but you don’t want him to have a skewed version of the world. There’s a difference between facts and make-believe. He needs to know that.”
“I wouldn’t worry about it,” Ryker’s mom replied. “He’s only six. All six-year-olds have their unique way of seeing the world. They grow out of it. No need to rush him.”
Despite his mom’s nonchalant attitude, Ryker’s grandpa did worry. What would happen if Ryker spent his whole life with his head in the clouds? He would stay blissfully ignorant of the real world because no one was brave enough to point out that some of his ideas were wrong. If his mother was too afraid to do it, maybe this was the job for a grandpa.
The next day, when Ryker got home from kindergarten, Grandpa suggested they spend some time together – just the two of them. “Maybe we’ll get some ice cream or visit that zoo you like.”
Ryker was happy to go along with Grandpa’s plan. They stopped at the Bean Museum first and walked straight to the African display. The lions were still frozen in position. Ryker crept right up to the divider rope and watched intensely, like he was daring them to blink or flinch.
“You know, Ryker, I think it’s great how you’re so interested in animals,” his grandpa said.
Ryker nodded without making a sound.
“I was also thinking that grandpas are important for teaching kids about the world. So I need to tell you something really important. Are you listening?”
Ryker turned his attention from the lions and looked up at his grandpa.
“The animals in here aren’t alive,” Grandpa continued. “They’re just skins from dead animals. They don’t move because they can’t. It’s not because they’re scared.”
Ryker turned his head to check whether anyone was standing nearby. Then he motioned with his finger for Grandpa to lean close to him. When Grandpa lowered his head, Ryker whispered in a relieved voice, “I know, but you can’t tell Mom. She thinks they’re alive.”
A crooked smile curled up Grandpa’s mouth. “Oh, she does?”
“Yes. I told her all about how real animals get scared with people around. She believed me.”
“But why did you tell her that if you know they’re not real?”
“I like coming here. So does she. But I don’t think she’ll come back if she knows the animals are dead. That other zoo is a long way away and it costs money. I wanna keep coming to this one.”
Grandpa nodded appreciatively. “I see. Well, I’m glad we had this talk.”
“You’re not gonna tell Mom, are you?”
Grandpa did not answer right away. Ryker’s question was more complicated than his six-year-old mind probably intended. His mom already knew about the stuffed animals, but should she know that Ryker was pulling a long ruse over on her? Grandpa finally decided he was not hurting anyone by keeping Ryker’s secret. He would let Ryker’s mom find out naturally. No need to rush things.
“I’ll let you tell her when you think she’s ready,” Grandpa said to Ryker.
“Do you want to look at more animals or should we go right to the slide?” Ryker asked.
“I guess we can go right to the slide.”
“And then we’ll get ice cream. That’s what you said before we left.”
Grandpa chuckled. “Yes, I remember. Ryker, now I realize you have a better grasp of reality than a lot of adults I know.”
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