Become the Person You Already Are
If you have children or have been around children, you’ll notice that they are often quite content and satisfied to exist in their own little world, fascinated with the particular project that at any given moment absorbs them. Whether they are playing with building blocks or digging in the sand, for a certain amount of time they need no one and want nothing. They are comfortable in their own skin and often seem to be transported to another world.
As we become adults and assume responsibilities in the world, we tend to stop this practice; we become other- and outer-directed and relegate all childhood activities to the past. When these childlike inclinations are stifled, we lose the sense of wonderment that often accompanies them. Our creativity becomes boxed up, and we wonder why life has become dull. That child is still within us, though, and can be rediscovered in our quiet corner. It is there that we can once again get in touch with our true spirit.
Visit a neighborhood playground or ball field and watch children as they play. Volunteer to coach a Little League team, or just observe the kids as they play and let them coach you. Allow them to teach you what it’s like to be free and uninhibited. After a snowfall, make a snowman with the neighborhood kids or engage in an innocent snowball fight. Ride the waves at the ocean and delight in the freedom of it. Rake leaves into a big enough pile to hide in and have some fun. As you loosen up and begin to discover how to let go and be spontaneous, take this attitude with you into your quiet corner and nurture it there. Before long, your true nature will reveal itself and some of the tension in your life will disappear.
Get to Know Yourself Again
Most of us can’t remember sitting in rapture as a child. Or if we can remember, we merely mourn the loss of such times and consider them over and done with. To alter our “grown-up” way of seeing, we simply need the key of willingness.
Be willing to spend time alone with yourself. Look closely at who you are, what makes you laugh or cry. Let go of old encrusted notions that bog you down. Ease them out of your mind. Invite your idiosyncrasies to have their say, and keep the ones that thrill you.
As you spend more time with yourself, your view of the world will begin to change. You’ll see yourself in a new light and have a new understanding of who you are in the world. Long-forgotten parts of you will rise to the surface and come alive. You’ll be more involved in your life than ever before, thanks to your own quiet corner.
Wow, this so great. What a enlivening piece. What a perfect reminder of how simple it can be to, not just re-live our childhoods, but to actually be child-like….with the help of children. What a gift. Thanks for putting this in a way that I can really absorb and relish it.