7 Childhood Beliefs You May Still Be Holding On To

7 Childhood Beliefs You May Still Be Holding On To

Imagination and fairytales of the adult world
Danielle Cassells
Danielle Cassells Jan 15, 2017
1553
views


1) Monsters

Not even gonna lie, this one is number one because it is number one on my list. Kids believe monsters live under their beds, in various spaces in the dark and in closets. This may just be out of a fear of the dark and what could be lurking in unknown spaces.

However, I know that as an adult I am not the only person who must tuck my feet under my covers so that nothing get my feet. Many in their adult age still fear dark places, not necessarily because of monsters the way children think of them, but because they fear creatures, like spiders, or just anything evil or frightening that could be lurking in the shadows.


2) Movies and Fairytales

Believe it or not, many of our adult beliefs and expectations for our lives are based on things we see in movies. I figured out the hard way that my ideas about relationships were based on fairytales and movies. In a way, the plots and fates of our favorite characters create these fantastical expectations of how our love life will go, how we will make it to our biggest dream, and how we will magically fix our family lives.

As always, life has a way of letting us know where the movies meet reality. Yet still, many grownups really do wait around for their “happy endings” or for “prince charming” to come and sweep them off their feet.


3) Santa

When Christmas arrives, most kids lose their marbles over Santa Claus. Good ‘ole Saint Nick—what’s not to love about the round, silver-bearded man in a red suit who shoots down the chimney bearing presents for every child? Many adults, especially those who relay these tales to their children, do themselves believe in Santa Claus—some out of tradition and some out of repetition of this legend. Seeing the sparkle in their children’s eyes and watching this belief take root in their children, many adults begin to believe in Santa again and the magic of Christmas.


4) People

Kids are very trusting, as we all once were. They believe in the people who raise them, their siblings, their peers, and they see goodness in everyone, even strangers. Obviously, this can be both a positive and a negative for children because there are good people but there are also dangerous people. Yet, I think all adults have also had an experience that shows us how trusting we still are of people we are unfamiliar with.


5) Dreams

Children are great big dreamers because their imagination is fresh and wild and they are constantly told that they can be “whatever they want to be” in life, whether it be Superman, a dragon, a butterfly or a firefighter. Many adults still hold dear to this with their life goals. Fortunately enough, some actually become the movie star, celebrity, singer, or great novelist that they dreamed they would be.


6) Wishes

Birthdays as a kid are not complete until you make your wish and blow out the candles on your cake. Many adults still wish on shooting stars and birthday candles or make the occasional dandelion wish. Though we cannot prove the effectiveness of these actions, we are still filled with childlike hope that when the candles go out, our wish is sent away to fulfill its mission.


7) The Impossible

As a child, everyone believes at some point that they can fly. After that first crash landing from your living room couch, however, many are brought back into the realm of reality. Yet still, somewhere inside each of us remains this child that is always longing for the impossible. Somewhere deep down, I know I still believe that if I were to hold on to enough balloons, I would float upwards, just like in the movie “Up.” Though we know certain things are impossible, many adults still entertain these beliefs.

Cover Image Credit: Pixabay Photography
Danielle Cassells
Danielle Cassells Jan 15, 2017
At University of South Carolina Upstate

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When You Give A Girl A Dad

You give her everything
Tristen Duhon
Tristen Duhon Apr 10, 2017
76863
views

They say that any male can be a father, but it takes a special person to be a dad. That dads are just the people that created the child, so to speak, but rather, dads raise their children to be the best they can be. Further, when you give a little girl a dad, you give her much more than a father; you give her the world in one man.

When you give a girl a dad, you give her a rock.

Life is tough, and life is constantly changing directions and route. In a world that's never not moving, a girl needs something stable. She needs something that won't let her be alone; someone that's going to be there when life is going great, and someone who is going to be there for her when life is everything but ideal. Dads don't give up on this daughters, they never will.

When you give a girl a dad, you give her a role model.

If we never had someone to look up to, we would never have someone to strive to be. When you give a little girl someone to look up to, you give her someone to be. We copy their mannerisms, we copy their habits, and we copy their work ethic. Little girls need someone to show them the world, so that they can create their own.

When you give a girl a dad, you give her the first boy she will ever love.

And I'm not really sure someone will ever be better than him either. He's the first guy to take your heart, and every person you love after him is just a comparison to his endless, unmatchable love. He shows you your worth, and he shows you what your should be treated like: a princess.

When you give a girl a dad, you give her someone to make proud.

After every softball game, soccer tournament, cheerleading competition, etc., you can find every little girl looking up to their dads for their approval. Later in life, they look to their dad with their grades, internships, and little accomplishments. Dads are the reason we try so hard to be the best we can be. Dads raised us to be the very best at whatever we chose to do, and they were there to support you through everything. They are the hardest critics, but they are always your biggest fans.

When you give a girl a dad, you give her a credit card.

It's completely true. Dads are the reason we have the things we have, thank the Lord. He's the best to shop with too, since he usually remains outside the store the entire time till he is summoned in to forge the bill. All seriousness, they always give their little girls more than they give themselves, and that's something we love so much about you.

When you give a girl a dad, you give her a shoulder to cry on.

When you fell down and cut yourself, your mom looked at you and told you to suck it up. But your dad, on the other hand, got down on the ground with you, and he let you cry. Then later on, when you made a mistake, or broke up with a boy, or just got sad, he was there to dry your tears and tell you everything was going to be okay, especially when you thought the world was crashing down. He will always be there to tell you everything is going to be okay, even when they don't know if everything is going to be okay. That's his job.

When you give a girl a dad, you give her a lifelong best friend.

My dad was my first best friend, and he will be my last. He's stood by me when times got tough, he carried me when I just couldn't do it anymore, and he yelled at me when I deserved it; but the one thing he has never done was give up on me. He will always be the first person I tell good news to, and the last person I ever want to disappoint. He's everything I could ever want in a best friend and more.

Dads are something out of a fairytale. They are your prince charming, your knight in shinny amour, and your fairy godfather. Dads are the reasons we are the people we are today; something that a million "thank you"' will never be enough for.

Cover Image Credit: tristen duhon
Tristen Duhon
Tristen Duhon Apr 10, 2017
At University of Mississippi

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College Can Be Difficult, But Trust Yourself, Girl

Life can throw you curveballs sometimes, and times can get tough, but it is SO important to pick yourself up and trust that you can do anything.

carolineboze
carolineboze May 23, 2019
988
views

I'll be honest, this school year was one of the hardest years of my life. There were lots of moments throughout the year that I just wanted to go home and get away from it all. I had to be reminded that I have been raised to try as hard as you possibly can, and I was doing that. It took some determination and time, but I didn't give up.

No matter how bad I felt, I stayed and persevered.

Now that I am home for the summer, I have been reminiscing on the past two semesters of school. At the beginning of the school year, I had a much different idea of how it would go. It was going to be "my year," but somehow while the year was going on, I felt that I had been completely wrong. It's easy to come to quick conclusions when life doesn't exactly go your way. Conclusions like "this year has been the worst year ever" and "I can never get a break" were often popping up in my head. My grades weren't where I wanted them, and I was surprised by a lot of occurrences that I never expected to happen (imagine a wild ride). I found out who my true friends are and who I could rely on, and luckily, my circle only grew. Being extremely extroverted, it was hard for me to get out and just do something. Being in this "rut" took a toll on me. I had to make those hard decisions about doing what was best for me in the long run instead of doing something just for the moment. Trust me when I say, this was NOT easy at all.

Through all the tears and change all around me, I decided to proceed to the finish line because I am NOT a quitter.

I decided that it was time for me to allow myself to fully, undeniably be me. I wanted to start doing the little things I enjoy again like working out, taking pictures, and simply just going out to do anything. I started forcing myself to take any opportunity that came my way, and it helped. One of the things that brought me so much joy was kickboxing – talk about therapeutic, people! Kickboxing at least three times a week helped my mood shift so much, and it was a start to seeing me again. I am so blessed with friends who would come over at, literally, any time of the day. Spending time with them helped me more than they could ever know. We did anything from just hanging out in my living room to splurging on a fun dinner. Through everything that I was doing daily, I was learning how to rely on myself. Looking back now, I have never really had to know what it felt like to rely mainly on myself. I did get so much help from my family and friends, but what good could their help do if I didn't want to help myself first?

Even though I felt like this was one of the worst years of my life, it taught me so much more than I ever expected. Looking back now, I grew so, so much. I learned how to smile when times get tough. I learned that it really is okay to not be okay sometimes, and it will be okay eventually. I learned that it's okay to ask for help because we weren't made to do life alone. Most importantly, I learned how to trust myself. My hope for anyone reading this, you will learn from my experience that the worst seasons get better. I am in such a good place right now because I never gave up, and I will continue to never give up. In a short amount of time, I am seeing how far I have come and how much I grew.

carolineboze
carolineboze May 23, 2019
At University of Kentucky

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