Fruit Suit Anonymous

It's a summery Monday morning, but instead of sleeping in, I'm outside of a museum, doing a hearty jig in a banana costume. I throw my hands in the air; I sing along to the music; I kick my feet in what I think is a shuffle. Strangers pass by and look at me as if I'm a loon.

Campers walk up to me at various speeds. Some are eager to high five the dancing banana, but most hide behind their parents. The small number who grin and laugh encourage me to be louder, to dance harder than before. I replicate the sprinkler, the soulja boy, and the dougie, all while greeting campers and their somewhat bemused and baffled parents as they walk through the museum doors.

My summer experience is a unique one. On paper, I'm an assistant teacher at a full day camp for fourth through eighth graders; I help program Lego Robots, build Google Cardboard headsets, and 3D print the campers' creations. In person, I am a girl in a fruit suit; in addition to instructing classes, I tell produce puns and sing campy sing-along songs. I am instantly recognizable, not known by my real name, but simply Banana Girl. I've become bolder and brighter, a banana, and a little bananas.

The costume isn't a part of the job description, but I've chosen to put it on...