Do you encourage children to have imaginary friends if they have one? Mine really haven't came across one that stuck w/ them yet but it was more of a curiosity question more then anything.

I do, because I dont think they are neccesarily imaginary [wink]

I know this post is a little older, but I just wanted to say that I had an imaginary friend when I was a child. It wasn't like drop dead Fred or anything, he was like my protector that played with me until I started school.

I encourged my daughter to have her friend...(not so sure it imaginary). My daughter will be 13 in about month and she still talks to and see "Mary"! But this past year she has told me she has always seen others too but "Mary" doesnt let the others talk to her. "Mary" tells her they may want her to do things for her and that my daughter should just enjoy being young right now! idk what to think yet!

All of my daughter's imaginary friends had the same names as her real ones. She would use them to work out her issues with them, and she would fight with them, too. I finally had to tell her that if her imaginary friends couldn't play nice, they couldn't come over anymore. [grin]

I agree with the fact not all imagenary friends are just that. I have been told too many things where my imagination as a child to find out as an adult they never where so who is to say whether the child is seeing someone or not. Dont worry unless they start to scare the child or the child is feeling threatened by them.

i think imaginay friends are wonderful beings for a child to have it shows they can see out of
the box something we tend to lose perspective of as we get older

I believe we are matched with our spirit guides before birth and that it is those very spirit guides who are our childrens imaginary friends most times. The memory of their spiritual life is still new to a young child and as they age that memory( and those imaginary friends) fade and disappear.
Strega Nona