#249 I Believe I Can Fly

I was born in 1991. That same year Nintendo released the video game Super Mario World in the U.S., and my dad got a copy when he bought a Super Nintendo Entertainment System. So it's more than fair to say that I grew up with Super Mario World.

At first I simply watched my dad play, holding the extra unplugged controller in my hands while pretending to play along with him. Before long I started to play myself, jumping up and down along with Mario. I played that game over and over and over again, and the minutes turned into hours, piling up over months and years of playing. Slowly I got good enough to clear a few levels, then a few a worlds. Eventually I defeated Bowser and rescued Princess Toadstool. Then I found all the secret exits and earned that special little star on the file selection screen.

As I grew up I kept on going back to Super Mario World. Some of my friends got newer home game console systems, but until my parents picked up a Wii during my high school days, I only had that old SNES plugged into a TV in our spare room. I had a few other games, especially when my uncle Sam passed his collection on to me, but I never enjoyed any of them as much as Super Mario World. Finding that cape and flying with Mario just didn't get old. And there were so many ways to play through the game. Playing a level with dinosaur pal Yoshi was a very different experience than going solo. Having a cap or firepower opened up new possibilities. I could play through levels in a nearly endless number of orders. I could use secrets to make the game easier or ignore them to challenge myself. No matter how good I got at the game, it never became boring.

When I left home for college, Super Mario World came with me. I've brought it with me through moves to seminary and two different churches. Now I fire it up once in a while to show it to my daughters. After thirty years with this game, I still can't get enough of the soundtrack, the variety of backgrounds and level designs, the sprawling world map. After a couple of half-hour sessions, my muscle memory comes returns, and I still haven't forgotten any of the secrets, so the game quickly becomes second nature once again. Playing Super Mario World makes me feel like a kid. At this point I'm sure I'll play it until that game cartridge wears out, and I'll savor every moment of it.

Grace and peace,

BMH