April Fools Day

I got this email today that had this story in it and thought I would share it with you. I don't know who this girl is that wrote this but I thought it was interesting that she lives in Raleigh, NC which is where we stay on furloughs. Anyway, hope you all enjoyed your April Fools Day. Our family had a fun time with it. Probably not the best idea to start off the day saying the house was on fire! But it sure was funny to watch people run! Justin did reprimand me for this because if there really is a fire one day no one will believe me. That is so true so I have learned my lesson but I think part of it too for him was that I woke him up. It is so much fun having our boys here!

April Fools

April Fool's Day is held on April 1st of each year. It started in France when King Charles the IX changed the calendar in 1564. Because March 21st - April 1st had been the original New Year's celebration date, some French traditionalists chose to continue to celebrate it then. They were called "April fools." The holiday then grew into a day when pranks are played on family members and friends. In France, they call those who are tricked an "April fish," and in Scotland they call them an "April gowk."

There are hundreds of jokes to play on April Fool's Day. It is more fun, however, if you can think of your own prank to play on a friend instead of using someone else's. However, sometimes it is hard to think of one yourself, especially if you have been using one every year. Here are some ideas that you may find useful.

A classic joke is to change the clocks. For example, you could set them one hour ahead of the actual time when nobody is looking and watch everyone's distressed faces and exclamations of "Where did the time go!" Make sure if you do this that you change every clock, not just one, or your trick may be found out immediately. Also, don't set the clocks too far ahead or the suspicious ones who know it is April Fool's Day will know what you did!

Another option is to switch the salt and sugar. This is very risky, though, and is not necessarily recommended. However, if you don't intend to eat whatever dessert the cook of your family makes out of salt, it may not be that bad of an idea.

My father has been the victim of many food tricks. Probably the funniest prank we have ever played was when we put red food coloring into my father's glass of water and told him it was cranberry juice. The look on his face was tremendously hilarious! Once we were performing a science experiment where we put salt on cucumbers. My father did not know anything unusual was on them and walked into the kitchen and ate some of them. "What in the world is wrong with these cucumbers?" he asked. "What did you do to them?" We thought that was funny, but we were slightly upset that he had eaten our science experiment. Another time we made gingerbread Christmas ornaments out of applesauce and cinnamon. Dad came in and tried to eat one, but he said he had to spit it out. "I thought they were cookies," he explained. By now I do not think he will trust us on April Fool's Day if we try to give him anything edible.

Try editing some pictures. For example, put a friend on the roof of the house, give your brother a fluffy wig, or give your little sister glasses. Make an impossible scene, like you sitting on the White House or flying in the sky.

One trick my siblings and I played several years ago was to hide when our dad came home, leaving a sign on the door reading "Gone to Iraq. Will be back at 4:00 a.m." Unfortunately, he never saw the sign.

Have you ever seen a quarter glued to the road in bubblegum? When I first saw one, it looked easy to get at, but I soon found that it was impossible. Try sticking money to the road outside your house. Count how many people try to rescue it!

There are plenty more pranks you can play on April Fool's Day, so get ideas and change or combine them into the best joke ever! Just make sure that you never re-use tricks on the same people.

Whatever you do, think before you act. Remember never to do something to someone that you would not want them to do to you. Do not do something that you think is funny that they will not laugh over. Before you play a prank on someone, think to yourself, "Would my friend really want me to do this to them, or would it make them sad or embarrass them?" Think about other people's feelings. Put yourself in their place. And if you do trick them, don't make fun of them and laugh at them for a long time. Sure, a little is okay, but if you go on and on about how dumb they looked and how funny it was and how they sure were stupid, you may hurt their feelings. It is better not to make someone laugh than it is to risk hurting them. Also, make sure you don't do anything dangerous. For example, don't start any fires or make any explosions. Don't give anybody a heart attack.

April Fool's Day is designed to make people laugh, not cry, so be considerate. But do not hesitate to play a friendly joke and have a good time.

Molly Fox

Molly is a 13-year-old eighth grader living with her family in Raleigh, North Carolina.