It was the Swiss psychologist and child development expert Jean Piaget who said, “Play is the work of children.” There can be no doubt children are hard workers! They seem determined to spend every waking hour laughing, playing, using their imaginations, and just plain having fun. Keeping themselves and others entertained is the name of the game — those others don’t have to be children, either. They can be another species. Cats and dogs are of course favorites, but why not a baby gorilla?
Two-year-old Isaiah was at the Columbus Zoo with his family when he made a new simian friend. As you’ll see in the thoroughly adorable video posted below, he found himself engaged in an energetic game of peekaboo with a baby gorilla. We have no idea which of them started it, but they were both having a wonderful time running around trying to hide from each other. Proving that gorillas are pretty brainy, the little ape appeared to be winning most of the time, fooling Isaiah with rapid changes of direction and clever attempts at hiding behind the tree-themed decor attached to the glass that separated them. As the little boy let out shrieks of delight, someone standing nearby said, “I can’t believe he’s doing this.” But is it really that surprising?
Meanwhile, an adult gorilla, possibly the little one’s mother, was sitting nearby taking in these doings. She actually seemed quite content that the two of them were having such a great time. Perhaps that’s also not so surprising. Gorillas are highly intelligent and also very social. They have family bonds and friendships that aren’t all that different from the ones we humans have.
Did you think this game of peekaboo was the cutest thing ever? Did you get some laughs from it? We’d love to hear from you in the comments below the video. Don’t forget to like and share!
