Where the Wildest Are

I don't particularly like little kids, and I don't babysit, but I believe in children. Children have an incredible way of sizing things up. They don’t spend much time on consideration; they like to go with their gut feeling. Children assume and question things at random, they crave exploration and they don’t dwell on much for long. "Grown-ups" are too focused on the negative aspects of their life, too focused on reasons that they can't do something, while children selectively hear the word no. I think that can be positively applied to life as an adult. When you ask a child what they want to be when they grow up, you get a wide array of answers: fireman, astronaut, princess. Children have no limitations, only desires. If you asked an adult the same question, initially the thought will be the same. However, then the list is siphoned by all the burdens keeping you from being that astronaut. If we didn't let negativity weigh down our dreams, I think there would be a lot more astronauts and princesses. Adults are too caught up on realistic applications and deadlines, and this stress stunts a person’s creativity. As an artist I’m often asked “How do you expect to get a real job?” To which I wonder, what is a real job? When I contemplate what career I one day aspire to have I don’t think about what will earn me a good income. I don’t think about how likely I am to be hired among other competitors. I simply ask myself (like a child would) what do I want to be when I grow up? The answer is constantly changing. Like a child, I’m indecisive. My career choice is a flavor of the week, but each week I’m inspired by my child like creativity to want to do something different. I have a yearning to explore fields of my interest, just like a child may have a princess dress, a doctor’s lab coat, and a cooking play set all in the same toy box. You take turns feeling out which one you like the best, but even if you become a princess, you don’t forget how it felt to be a chef and a doctor. I’m not so worried about what I’m going to be when I grow up, or having an executive career.  As long as I keep pursuing my interests I know whatever I end up doing will be enjoyable.  A child’s mind is less about the outcome and more about the fun in finding yourself along the way, and I try to keep that in mind daily. Whether it’s worrying about how in the world to begin a project, or how I’m going to finish one on time, as long as I’m enjoying what I’m doing I know it will lead me to a happy ending. No one asks a child “How do you expect to become an astronaut?” when they flaunt their aspirations. Maybe it’s because the confidence a child has, maybe it’s because they don’t want to spoil a kid’s dream, or maybe it’s because deep down the little kid inside that grown-up knows there’s nothing stopping them.