Box Forts

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As a kid, my favorite part about moving was the boxes. With every move, I eagerly waited for the boxes to slowly be unloaded from the moving truck. I begged my mom to hurry and remove the contents of each box until they were completely empty. I grabbed each box and ran them over to the space where I begged my parents to let me build a box fort, placing it in a chaotic pile. I loved the little and medium-sized boxes, but the giant ones were always my favorite. I then foraged through our packed belongings to find scissors and my little self’s favorite item in the whole world – tape.

Cardboard, scissors, and tape meant endless possibilities for my extremely wild imagination. It meant rocket ships, houses, airplanes, mazes – anything my mind could conjure up. When I was four years old, I made my first cardboard creation, which was a rocket ship named after the new state I had just moved to, Nevada. It held a spot for both me and my brother: the pilot and co-pilot. I used my imagination and this rocket ship to soar to different made-up planets and across the galaxy.

After the military sent us to Maryland, I created a three-story box fort just strong enough to hold my brother's and my weight. I taped together each box to create tunnel after tunnel and used leftover cardboard to make stairs, furniture, and decorations. In the back, I created a small doghouse for my dog Cody where I left treats for him. My seven-year-old imagination enticed me to play house, pirates, dolls, and so much more.

My favorite box fort was built after moving to Missouri. I was eleven at the time and found that the boxes had a hard time holding my weight, so I built a maze. I used giant boxes that were taller than me to create each wall, covering my entire basement with cardboard walls and dust. I spent hours experimenting with formations to make the most complex design out of the space I had. I did not want a basic, normal maze. I wanted to trick my cousins who were soon coming to visit us, so I made secret hidden compartments throughout the maze, ensuring my hide-and-seek victory. 

Building box forts and creations has always been a staple in every move the military required us to make. I never liked all the hardships that came with moving constantly; I missed my old friends and was scared to start each new school, but building these box forts always gave me something to look forward to. I could get lost in my imagination and creation instead of dwelling on the friends and school I would never see again.

In the ever-changing life of military kids, there are rarely constantly familiar things, but designing these cardboard creations was something familiar for me to hold onto, even though the place I lived was brand new. Cardboard, scissors, and tape held me together when my world did not.