Be A Child At Heart
Get High On Life
At that time the disciples came to Jesus, saying, "Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?"
And calling to him a child, he put him in the midst of them and said, "Truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven." (Matthew 18:1-4)
While working my way through Julia Cameron's The Artist's Way, I came to a realisation.
Amidst all the adulting, I had forgotten about the child within me. I had forgotten to love and take care of young Rubina in me.
This is quite a common thing to happen to us.
Believe it or not, we know how to live and enjoy life. We did it as children.
Thrown into the world of marks, paychecks, errands, responsibilities, credit scores and family gatherings, we become serious and lifeless. We spend our days either toiling through work or scrolling through the phone. We forgot how to live and enjoy life.
As children, we played and laughed. We became friends with anyone we crossed paths with. We reached deep focus and flow with our colouring pencils. We never thought twice before jumping off the high step. We never cared what others thought of us. We greeted everyone with smiles and hugs. We cried our lungs off when we felt sad or bad. And just a kiss on our wounds made us feel better. We didn't have a past or a future. We just lived and enjoyed the present.
As adults, we have stopped playing and wondering if our laughter is embarrassing. We don't even look at the people passing us by, and we become friends with people only because we have to or it might be of some benefit. Deep focus and flow are foreign to us because we are constantly distracted by notifications and useless conversations. We have become astronauts, but the armchair kind - we just sit and imagine what it would be like to take that leap of faith, but we rarely get up and push ourselves off that edge. And, oh! we have to know what people are talking about us. Smiles are superficial, and hugs are customary. And crying is for babies because if you cry, you are thought of as a weak person. A kiss doesn't make up for the wounds we receive nowadays, and what makes it worse is we keep scratching at it, so it doesn't heal at all. All we think about is all the mistakes we have made in the past. I wish I had said that. I wish I had done that. I wish I broke his heart before he broke mine. And when it comes to the future, we can't help but think about all the things we want, the things we have to do, the things we have to achieve, the places we have to go, the milestones we have to reach. When I get X, I'll be happy - is a wish we don't understand will never come true. Our present is something that gets lost in the tug of war between past and present.
Let's talk about the Bible verse I shared at the beginning of this essay. Primarily the bold words.
unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven
I am not a religious person. So when I came across this line, here's what I take from it -
If you are a boring adult who does nothing else but clocked in and out of work, ran errands, watched Netflix and made good use of your reproductive system, you ain't living, bro.
If you want to live, and live an incredible life, be like a child. Always curious, always having a fun time, and being present in the moment. Because that's what life is about.
Have some excitement in your life.
And if you can't find some, then make some. Next time you make coffee for yourself, turn it into an event.
Cooking dinner? Have a dance party.
Shitty job? Firstly, quit it and find something that's not shitty. Second, add some joy into your life - a visit to the bookstore, a walk around the park, a game of tennis, tickets to the movie you're looking forward to.
Having a stressful phase? Find some solace in your favourite people, things, places, pets, hopes and dreams - and know that you'll make it through.
There is so much to love, enjoy, and look forward to in this life. Get high on it.
When you love yourself and find something to love in the world around you, the child within you feels happy and skips around in delight. And as the protector and guardian of that child, you'll be satisfied too.
And who knows, maybe you'll skip around too.
