I spent the Fourth of July with friends in Idyllwild, California, a small town nestled among the pines in the San Jacinto mountains. It was one of those rare times when I had nothing to do but kick back, sip a cappuccino in the sunshine and watch the parade go down Main Street. A feeling of pure contentment and relaxation washed over me. It was rather odd to be hanging out with no “to do” list plaguing me. The experience reminded me of the summers of my youth when time was filled with nothing but playing tag, catching fireflies, squirt gun fights, twirling sparklers and wishing on stars.
A friend recently remarked to me that she was intent on finding her “inner child” and it inspired me to put some focus on that too. I had never really thought much about the subject before so I did some research and this is what I learned.
We all have an “inner child” because we were all children once. But exactly who is that little person? Your inner child is a fun loving, happy, frivolous, joyful, humorous you. It’s the “you” before it was changed into the sophisticated, mature, serious, and task-oriented you of today. Remember the old you whose only worry was what flavor ice cream to choose at Baskin Robbins?
Experts say we should embrace our inner child. Why? As adults, we obsess too much over little things. Kids are carefree. They do stuff they like. They don’t jam their calendars with meaningless events because it is expected. Nor do children obsess over calories or go nuts if the house isn’t spotless. What they do is laugh… a lot. I mean really laugh, not let out little giggles. Children roll on the floor letting out big belly laughs.
Children love picnics. They don’t mind the ants… some have been known to eat them. They are okay with getting dirty. And they know how to play. It’s spontaneous. They do not have to pencil it in or figure out what would make them happy. Just watch a child at play. It’s exhausting! They whirl and dig and zoom and jump. They tumble and skip and hop and twirl. They always have a grin on their faces. Why? Because they are experts at squeezing out every ounce of fun in their day. Then, they can barely wait for the next day to do it all over again.
I now see the benefit in finding my inner child. As of today, I am resolving to spend more time with people under the age of five. I want my inner child to resurface and no doubt the wee ones will show me how. My desire is to be a person who knows how to have fun and play for play’s sake. I’m going to lighten up, laugh more and not take myself so seriously.
How about it? You in? Come on, I double dog dare you!
