The Game of “Peanut”

As boy, the composer

Manuel de Falla along with his young cousin,

created a game they called: "Peanut."

I can find no evidence of the existence

of the game called "Peanut” anywhere, except for

its mention during a decades old interview with

de Falla's aunt, reminiscing on the great Spanish composer's

life as a boy in Cádiz, Spain.

The game of “Peanut” as described

by de Falla's aunt is played thusly:

Two players lay belly-down, silently side-by-side

in opposite directions on the floor of the house,

and incrementally begin to shrink in size.

As they shrink, they stop periodically to report

their visual findings to one another, of how things

appear to be from these new perspectives, and

the game continues this way until each player

shrinks down to the size of a peanut.

The game was first played by the young cousins around 1883,

and in 1891, girls were allowed to play "Peanut" without

being separated from the boys, adding elements of excitement

and titillation to the game.

Adults take notice.

There are no winners nor losers in the game of "Peanut"

and parents laud the intense concentration and blessed silence

which comes with the game, and although a game-board

of "Peanut" would be ridiculous, the game as created by

de Falla and cousin is certainly interesting in concept,

and could be introduced to rainy day kids as an alternative to...