Reuniting with My Childhood Game: Doodle Jump

By: Grace

They say to embrace your inner-child, but what does that really mean? Can it be done by playing a game? Or warming your heart with your former favorite app? Apparently, it can.

I started playing Doodle Jump when the iPhone and iPod Touch came out around 2010. Sitting in the backseat on the way to dance rehearsal, the jumping doodle dodging spaceships and cartoon aliens was my greatest feat. As the doodle jumped, I felt like a proud mom on the other side of the screen. Today in prison, the game brought me the same smile from the inside out.

I'm walking through the hallways of the housing unit, holding my screen tight and smiling from ear to ear.

"What are you so happy about?" One of the girls ask.

"I'm playing Doodle Jump!" I tell her.

"What the hell is that?"

I position my doodle in a safe jumping space and gently turn my screen to face her.

"Oh! I remember that game!" She screams.

We are happily walking down the hall watching the doodle go. It doesn't take much for the technological era to bring a smile to our faces. We witness the absence of popular media platforms - not to mention, any access to the internet - like TikTok, Instagram, or Snapchat. We lose sight of what it means to look down at our screens and smile. We receive photos and 30 second videos from our loved ones however, there remains something bittersweet in the midst of celebrating our loved ones lives. We miss the opportunity to escape in a real-world way. There's no "Netflix and Chill" or talk about that hilarious TikTok gone viral.

Playing a game like Doodle Jump - and watching RuPaul’s Drag Race - is the closest thing to it.

Thank you, Doodle Jump, for emotionally recharging my Gen-Z battery and spiritually refilling my cold cold heart - cause I think it's been a long, long time.