Most children look forward to growing up. Edwin Blunder, however, was different. As soon as he was old enough to express himself, he made it quite clear that had no interest in being a grownup.
"I am a small boy," Edwin said to his father and his mother, "and I intend to remain a small boy for as long as I can."
Edwin was the only child of Mr. and Mrs. Blunder. His father and his mother doted on him. He had plenty of toys, a red bicycle, and a puppy.
Edwin did not like grownups. Apart from Mr. and Mrs. Blunder, for whom he had an honest affection, he had no use for anyone who was not a child. He viewed grownups as a necessary evil. In his estimation, none of them were worthy of trust. Most of them, in his view, were nothing more than petty tyrants. He had a particularly bad opinion of teachers.
Once, Edwin's aunt asked him what he wanted to be when he was older. When Edwin replied that he would prefer to remain a child and not grow any older, his aunt was taken aback. She had been thinking that he might want to be an executive in a corporation.
Edwin did not want to be an executive. He wanted to be Peter Pan. He was deeply attached to the famous story by J. M. Barrie. While other children played games in which they pretended to be grownups, Edwin sat alone and imagined that he was Peter Pan, flying to the Neverland with Tinker Bell at his side. His mother was disturbed by his daydreams.
"Edwin is always daydreaming," Mrs. Blunder said to her husband.
"Yes, he does a lively imagination," said Mr. Blunder.
"Do you think it's harmful?" asked Mrs. Blunder.
"No, leave him to his own thoughts for now," replied Mr. Blunder. "When he is older he will have no time for daydreaming."
Edwin did grow older, but he continued to daydream, and his childish resistance to being a grownup hardened into a stand of firm rejection. He wanted nothing to do with growing up.
On his eighteenth birthday, his aunt gave him a leather briefcase, hoping that he would take a hint in regard to his future. Edwin promptly took the briefcase and threw it into a pond. He watched intently as it sank into the water. He would never be an executive.
Money and romance, which appeared to Edwin to be the main elements of growing up, held no appeal for him. He preferred to dream of the Neverland and its fanciful characters.
Mrs. Blunder was now extremely concerned about her son. Mr. Blunder, who was inclined to be more understanding than most fathers, also had become concerned. They both could see that Edwin was adamantly refusing to grow up.
"Edwin, you are no longer a small boy," Mr. Blunder said to his son.
"I do shave every morning, if that is what you mean," said Edwin.
"When are you going to grow up?" asked Mr. Blunder. "When are you going to get a job and have a family of your own?"
"Never," replied Edwin. "I don't want those things."
"What do you propose to do with your life?" asked Mr. Blunder, trying to be reasonable.
"I want to go to the Neverland and fight against Captain Hook," replied Edwin.
"The Neverland is imaginary, Edwin," said Mr. Blunder. "You can't actually go there."
"It is not imaginary to me," said Edwin.
"Well, then, how will you go about getting to the Neverland?" asked Mr. Blunder, with a knowing wink at his wife.
"Tinker Bell will lead me there," replied Edwin.
Mr. and Mrs. Blunder were greatly alarmed. They wanted Edwin to find a profession. They wanted him to take a wife. They wanted to have grandchildren. What prospects in life could there be for someone who imagined himself to be Peter Pan?
Mrs. Blunder wept for days and days. Mr. Blunder paced and fretted. They could not reconcile themselves to having a son who preferred being a child to being a grownup.
Edwin felt regret toward his father and his mother. He knew that in their own narrow way, they loved him. He was aware of their anguish, and he pitied them to a slight extent, but he was unwilling to be what they wanted him to be.
"Your hearts are here, in this world," Edwin said to them, "but my heart is in the Neverland."
Mr. and Mrs. Blunder fell into despair. Edwin, their only child, was a severe disappointment to them. He did not want to grow up. He did not want to make money or get married. They had tried to understand him, but now their understanding turned bitter.
"I should never have allowed him to daydream," said Mr. Blunder.
"I want to be a grandmother!" said Mrs. Blunder.
"I always knew there was something odd about him," said Edwin's aunt.
"I will never be a grownup," said Edwin.
Early on a summer morning, Mr. and Mrs. Blunder found that Edwin had not slept in his bed during the night. They stood, afraid and perplexed, unable to account for what had happened to their son. The window near his bed was open, and on his pillow there was a handful of glittery dust.
