When did we stop Stargazing?

Imagine with me.

You’re in an open field, in the middle of the night. Laying on your back, you stare at the midnight sky and adore the twinkling of the lights; you see constellations you’ve never noticed before, along with galaxies and shooting stars, and you start to think… We really are THAT small.

When did we stop stargazing?

Stargazing seems to be uniquely relegated as a “child’s activity”; and it isn’t the only one. Flower picking, cloud chasing, blanket fort building, and even dancing, are all things we used to do as kids, but quit doing at some point in our lives as adults. Sure, maybe we’ll dance at weddings, or build a blanket fort when we’re babysitting, but never do we do this of our own volition. After all, that’s just kids stuff. That’s child’s play. We’re too grown up for that… right?

I hate to disagree, but we aren’t too grown for that at all. You see, all of us have an inner child that longs to be allowed in our lives, to enrich and enhance our day-to-day our everyday walk, bringing a joy and wonder that we have long since forgotten; our inner child is a gateway to a part of us that we have locked away under the guise of “adult life”.

“Ok, but how do I find my inner child after so long?” Another good question-you’re on fire. I’ll give you a simple way to start. If you have nieces/nephews, or young children of your own, or even a friend who will let you borrow their kid for a few hours, take them to the park. Find a stick, and ask them “What is this?” Naturally, they’ll say “A stick”. (Smart alecks.) So, hit them back with this- “Ok, but imagine…” Their eyes will light up, and all of a sudden it isn’t just a stick. It’s a Harry Potter Wand, a Lightsaber, a Sword, a Conductors Baton… The choices are endless! So, what changed? The item, or the mindset?

Often, the lesson we needed to learn was the simple one. WE can’t control jack- we can only control ourselves, and our mindset.

“But Jake”, you may ask, “Why is our inner child so important?” Great question, I’m glad you asked. There is not a single aspect of our lives that will not be enhanced by the addition of our inner child. I mean that- EVERY part of our life is enhanced by this. Take financial stress, for example. You may say “I’m stressed because of bills and X-Y-Z”. Add your inner child to the mix, and you’ll hear “We’re making that much money??? Awesome!” Or if you’re in a rough spot with your partner (“They’re pissing me off right now”), you’ll hear “We found someone to love??? Cool!” When life gets boring and mundane, our inner child helps bring a sense of innocence and newfound wonder to our soul.

I truly believe we were all created with an inner child to be our help and our guide. However, I must caution this: there is a balance; a balance between our inner child sitting at the table, versus running the meeting. Child-LIKE, versus Child-ISH. Child-like is wondrous, imaginative, and innocent. Child-ish is selfish, whiny, and immature. Embrace a child-like spirit, and run from a child-ish mindset.

We all have an inner child that needs to be a part of our lives. When we embrace that, instead of running away, we become more of who we were made to be.