The holidays are a time for spending with family -- grandparents, aunts and uncles, and the best part: cousins. Cousins are the next closest thing to siblings, especially for only-children like me. They are the people who completely understand the craziness of your family and have no choice but to hang out with you at family events. Going home this Thanksgiving, I spent a lot of time with my 5-year-old cousin. And although she may look up to me as her role model, she has taught me some pretty impressive things, too.
1. Life can be as magical as you make it.
Letting your imagination run wild is the best way to live life. If we are being honest, life can be boring at times… So why not create something exciting? No one said we couldn’t dress up and pretend to be princesses. No one said that the house couldn’t turn into a castle. A 5-year-old's imagination is about as powerful as it gets. And maybe she is just creative with what colors she scribbles on a piece of paper, but she has shown me the power of creativity and making life a little more colorful.
2. You don't have to play with everyone on the playground.
My favorite is when she comes to me and tells me “Gaby, this girl told me not to play with her today at school… so I didn’t.” You really don’t have to… just do your own thing. Play with whoever and whatever you want, whenever you want. Who cares what anyone thinks? If you’re enjoying yourself and doing what you want, it doesn’t matter. Life is too short to be worried about what other people are doing. Kids are the perfect example of this. If they want to run around in circles screaming, they do it. If they want to play with their dolls for one minute and then drop it and play with another toy, they do it. If they don’t want to play with someone, they go and play with someone else. They are explicitly themselves, and that’s the best way to live.
3. Innocence is beautiful.
Coming home from the craziness of the “real world” and seeing a little 5-year-old so innocent and unexposed is so sweet. She isn’t exposed to anything at all. No stress, no homework, no worries… no heartbreak. She knows nothing except the beauty of waking up every morning to Fruit Loops and Disney princesses on TV. If all I had to worry about in my life was which outfit I am going to put on my Barbie next, I would want to stay a kid forever. Innocence is beautiful, and as much as I wish she would never grow up, I know she will have to face society eventually, and all I hope is that the innocence lasts.
4. Crying every once in a while is OK.
Sometimes we need to let it all out when life is just not happening. While she may cry over the fact that her favorite toy broke and I want to cry over the fact that I have three papers, a project, and an exam due in a week, crying is crying and we need it. Although it is more socially acceptable for her to bawl her eyes out in public, its OK for all of us to let out a few tears once in a while.
5. The world is a big place.
For a 5-year-old, everything is pretty big. They see the world from so far down and cannot comprehend the extensiveness of what is around them. But then again, I’m 18 years old and still can’t either. There is so much to learn and so much to do in this world. Seeing her in this massive world just comes to show that in perspective, we are all just as small as a little 5-year-old.
So, to my cousin (and all 5-year-olds everywhere): Please try to never grow up, and thank you for teaching me that the best lessons come in the smallest packages.
