Has someone ever told you that you need to grow up? If not, I'm sure it'll happen eventually if you are a kid at heart, and you love to live whimsically. You never have to grow out of watching cartoons or silly shenanigans, and you never have to change yourself for someone just because they told you to. Being a "grown up" is a matter of opinion. Here are some reasons why you do not have to grow up even if someone tells you to.
1: You understand children better.
If you still sometimes think in the way a child thinks, questioning authority, cartoons are the best, asking why all the time, you'll be able to understand why a child is/was doing what they did and why. Kids think much differently than their parents on most occasions. They are the type of people that need a reason to do what they are told. They want to know the why to go along with the what. If you can think along those lines, not only will you be a smarter parent, in my opinion, but you will be able to communicate better with the children around you.
2: Your sense of wonder keeps going.
Children are always full of wonder when they see something for the first time. There have been too many times where I'll see a "grown up" something for the first time and not appreciate the work or planning that had gone into something. Children, while they don't understand the work, understand that something extraordinary happened to make what's going on occur. They still have their sense of excitement for the little things.
3: You're more creative.
I firmly believe that if you stay a child at heart that you're more creative. Keeping your imagination about you is something that a lot of people grow out of in their early teens when they start to get a concept of what reality is. You don't have to sacrifice your imagination and creativity for the real world. If you can keep them with you, you will be better off in a creative job. Do you think Walt Disney was all business and no play? Heck no. He was a child at heart and kept his imagination on the table. He never grew up.
4: You'll tend to be able to make something bad into something good.
While it's true that children don't understand when something goes wrong, they can build from it. This stems along from still having an imagination. Working on a painting that was supposed to go one way and now it looks like something completely different? Keep your kid like imagination and that new painting will turn out amazing. No one would even know that you "messed up" if you were painting something for yourself. You'll have that ability to take the bad and make something from it.
5: You don't have to pretend to be someone you're not.
It happens in the "grown up" world. We all do it. We pretend to be someone we're not to impress a potential partner, teacher, friend,employer, family member, etc. We all do it. Kids do not give two hoots about who likes them or not. We need to learn from that. Children are honest about who they are. If they do not like something, they let us know. If they want something, they let us know. Us "grown ups" need to be more like that, and we'll have the tact and skill to be able to communicate those wants and dislikes effectively. Children are the most real people you will ever meet.
Personally, I had "grown up," but I am slowly going back to being a kid at heart. I feel like it's better for me. I do not want to grow up anymore. I want to keep my sense of wonder and imagination. I feel like it helps me be better at my work. I am definitely more true to myself, and my true friends love me for who I am. I am a big kid, and I love it. You should, too.
Now, go out and build your pillow forts to have your date night conversations in. You'll thank me for it later.
