Peter Pan

“We don't stop playing because we grow old; we grow old because we stop playing.” - George Bernard Shaw

As we grow older, certain behaviors naturally abate. While we’re all glad our days of thumb-sucking and bed-wetting are behind us, positive traits such as limitless imagination and spontaneity also diminish. Remember how a couple of blankets and pillows could transform the living room sofa into a magical fort? Or how a humble bathroom towel could turn an average boy into a superhero?

As the children we once were, growing up was a process of becoming adults. Not only biologically but also mentally. We learned to be responsible, to pay the bills, to get things done and we learned the complex world of adulthood. To become adults we had to lose our tantrums, silliness, our childhood. And we lost our minds. Our child-like minds.

When people start to think like a child, they begin to see things from a fresh perspective. They learn to step back and view problems, people and things from a completely different point of view.

With respect to creativity, the freshness of the child's view is not to be underestimated. When the world of the small child is properly understood, then perhaps it is no surprise that Einstein said he was led to his discoveries by asking questions that "only children ask."

While I was growing up my parents taught me that adults were not allowed to act like kids. Children were adults in waiting. Adults were what mattered. As an adult it was my job to buckle down and pull my weight in this world. There was simply no room for childish thinking.

Unlike adults, however, kids have an energy that comes from a belief that life is terrific; that tomorrow is an exciting prospect and that the future will be amazing.

Adults generally dread tomorrow. Tomorrow means another problem at work that they will have to solve. It means another day doing things that they wouldn’t be doing “if only” they were (rich, powerful, famous, etc.). Adults have generally given up on their lives. As they get older, many adults seem to go insane. They get bitter. Some become obsessed. They often smile less and less. Not all of them are like this but far too many are.

Think like a child! Children don’t need a reason to be happy! They just are! Following a child’s lead will give you more to be grateful for, and in turn, will bring more into your life 

Note: I wanna be like Peter Pan ....the Boy Who Wouldn't Grow up