I remember being a little kid, sitting on the grass during recess, and making wishes on daisies as my young and innocent mind pondered what it might be like to be older. In fact, I couldn’t wait to be older. I was tired of being the shortest one in my class, and I wondered if there would ever be a time when boys wouldn’t have cooties. I planned out my wedding, and at the time, the groom in my head was the boy who pulled on my pigtails during math class.
What would it be like to be in high school? Would parties really be as crazy as they appeared in movies? Would I be as pretty and sophisticated as Lizzie McGuire? I thought I had so much to learn about everything, and I did. I absolutely did…in some respects. What I didn’t realize was that as I got older, I would look back and recognize that perhaps there were things I could learn from my younger self.
1. It’s okay to be silly, embarrassing and immature. While there is most certainly a time and place for professional behavior, you don’t always have to keep it together. When did we get so serious? Why can't we play capture the flag or dress-up or find knock-knock jokes hilarious? Call me strange, but as far as I’m concerned, laughing too much never hurt anyone.
2. Dancing like an idiot is more fun than dancing well. I’m not referencing the fox trot or anything on that level, per se, but it’s much more entertaining to do the sprinkler or the shopping cart than it is to just nod up and down like a pretentious hipster.
3. Enjoy kid's TV shows, because what kids watch today is garbage. My parents used to think their TV shows were the best (Alvin and the Chipmunks, Bewitched, The Jetsons, etc.), whereas l maintain that my Nickelodeon and Disney Channel shows were the epitome of prime childhood entertainment. Yet nowadays, I don't even know what kids watch. Their TV shows are a travesty, so half the time they end up watching what we did (Drake and Josh, Rocket Power, and classic Disney Channel movies like Smart House, Xenon, and Johnny Tsunami).
4. Live in the present. It’s so easy to look forward to what may or may not come in the future, but that shouldn’t prevent you from enjoying the current moment. It sounds morbid, but the idea that tomorrow will come is never certain. Also, preoccupying yourself with the future is not productive. It only takes away from something that you could presently be doing to build memories or character.
5. Do what you love. The thing about kids is that, at such a young age, they haven’t been soiled by the materialistic society we live in for the most part. They may aspire to be the President of the United States or even Jennifer Lawrence, but I’d like to think that their dreams don’t stem from the desire for fame or fortune. Kids want to do big things because they truly believe they can. They believe that they’re good enough. They believe they have the capability to run the country or excel in their respective interest because they have no reason to believe otherwise.
6. Be a good friend. I recently watched a video about two elementary school-aged best friends. One friend was diagnosed with cancer, and the other was troubled by the fact that he wasn’t seeing his friend in school as much (since the friend was going through chemotherapy treatments, etc.). When he saw his friend come to school with a bald head, he shaved his head as well, because he didn’t want his best friend to have to bear anything alone. While these friendships exist in adulthood, I’ve often found that there is less selflessness involved. These days, people don’t want to get their hands too dirty. It’s better not to get involved. We make excuses, truly believing that it might be better to stay out of a situation. We close our eyes. Kids, on the other hand, are involved. Oh, you want to call my friend a weenie? Let’s battle this out on the kickball field during recess.
7. When in a rush, Lunchables are the best option, and the only option. You can make your own pizza, and maybe -- if you’re lucky -- even land a pack with a Capri Sun in it. Frankly, I don’t know why I don’t see more kids pulling out Lunchables during 75-minute lectures.
8. Don't budge in line. It's rude. I learned my lesson on that one, fateful day I decided to buy lunch. I usually played it safe and packed a peanut butter and jelly sandwich in my Pound Puppies lunchbox, but it was Dominos Pizza day, for goodness sake! I was so excited that I may or may not have tried to get in front of an older girl. She yelled at me, and I ended up in tears. But it’s okay, because I learned then, rather than now, that budging in line isn’t socially acceptable, no matter how badly I think I deserve to be at the front. I just hope that the tourist family clans at Disney World with their vibrant matching fanny packs will eventually pick up on this universal truth.
9. It's not the end of the world. There were times growing up when I would fall off my bike and scrape my knee. There were also times when girls would make fun of me for having big ears, and I would go home and cry to my mom about it. The thing is, I didn’t dwell on these things. As much as they may have bothered me for an hour, or a day, my life went on. I graduated elementary school, and before I knew it, I was moving into my college freshman dorm room. There’s no need to stress about the little things, because at the end of the day, the culmination of all the good things outweighs them. The bad times become insignificant moments that merely serve the purpose of building character.
10. Innocence is bliss. There is a real world out there. And as each day goes by, this fact becomes more apparent. I can remember September 11 of my first grade year. After school was let out early, my mom picked me up with red-rimmed eyes. I was so young, I could not possibly grasp what had happened, or why. I couldn’t even fathom that evil people existed. And while understanding the horrors of the world is a vital part of growing up and inhabiting such a vast planet, there is something special about the innocent eyes and mind of a young child. While, yes, they are naïve, they also have the distinct ability to see goodness in anything and anyone.
