Children are our greatest teachers

We shouldn't blame ourselves for not retaining the playful & carefree disposition of our younger selves. This little thing called life happened.

With life comes responsibility. And aspirations & desires.

With life comes relationships. And habits. Some we teach ourselves, some are taught by others. Some constructive, some destructive.

This essay isn't for finger-pointing & told-you-so's.

It's to remind us of the beauty we brought into the world & how we can tap into the things that made our younger selves so damn awesome.

Children live in the present

Human beings are like time machines.

We spend the majority of our time stuck in the past (ruminating) or thrust into the future (fearing).

Our bodies are here. But our minds & spirit are not.

Children, on the other hand, are intuitively present.

They don't worry if they said the wrong thing to their boss.

They're not anxious about meeting their partners' parents.

Sans aspirations, responsibilities, and relationships, children are ever-present.

But don't be fooled. We have the power to be present as well.

It just takes want & work.

Children experience fully

In Buddhism, there's this concept of detachment.

You might have preconceived notions of what it means.

But don't be fooled.

Detachment ≠ Apathy.

Detachment is the opposite of attachment, which refers to clinging strongly enough to causes problems.

Children are perfectly detached.

They feel deeply, whether it's laughing at peekaboo or crying because their toy broke, but they are as quick to forget as they are to hold on.

We, as adults, strive for this balance.

How do we embrace the full experience of life without clinging onto everything we assign meaning too, but in reality, is meaningless?

Children treat life like one big game

Kids LOVE games.

I know that I did.

I played Pokemon in Kindergarten because it transported me.

I played punchball in 3rd grade because it made me feel connected.

But I'd argue we—as adults—are all playing a game & we should continue to find games to play as we navigate life.

Packy McCormick was onto something when he said "We’re all playing a Great Online Game. How well we play determines the rewards we get, online and offline."

I started playing a new game recently. It mixes adventure & education. It takes place on Twitter & it resides in the world of NFTs.

What's a game that you're playing?

Children are wildly imaginative

When we want to be creative, we tell ourselves to "think outside of the box."

And this proverbial box is shaped by pre-conceived notions, patterns, strongly-held beliefs, and judgments.

Children have no such thoughts, so they experience no such box.

By definition, children are always thinking outside of the box.

And children constantly ask "Why?"

Society teaches us to temper our curiosity.

Too many questions & you might come off as rude.

The wrong question & you might seem dumb.

A poorly timed question & you might be called defiant.

Kids have no such "rules."

To a child, the world is one massive, unexplored cave, and curiosity is their flashlight.?