When we were children, there weren’t many things that could put us in a bad mood. If we really think about it, the older we have gotten, the shades of life have unintentionally dimmed our lights. We move away from home and moved away from looking at our world with excitement and awe, wonder and fresh eyes….like we did as children.

Remember?!

The last few months have been so eye-opening for me. I am really living life on purpose and being intentional about enjoying it. I am bringing the excitement and curiosity back and man does it feel good! I have taken time to weed out what doesn’t serve the good in me and created space for wonder. I am so much happier now that I take chances and do things that I normally wouldn’t… I get excited over the silliest things like having tea alone downtown or hanging out by the lake having ice cream. There is so much fulfillment and warmth in those things and I am feeling a little like a kid again…

I wish everyone could feel that feeling again. We should be people that speak to a person that walks by or open the door for someone else. It is nice to see people small talk to the barista at Starbucks, or compliments strangers…just happy to be walking the planet and showing it.

I am learning to be more open and welcoming. I am more mindful of the little things around me and grateful that I get to experience it all. I love feeling this “spark”. I love feeling this sense of awe and wonder and at times…silliness! It is so freeing.

Think about this. As a child, there was no past and no future. We were not thinking about bills or 401Ks, and not one thought of dating or to-do lists. We were in the moment, entertained by every little thing, not a care in the world.

Now that we have grown up, we take all of those little things for granted. We let our jobs and responsibilities weigh us down. We think that it is no big deal when the ice cream truck passes by or when we see an impressive cloud in the sky. We have to stop letting the sometimes heaviness of life outweigh the excitement and zest for life we used to have. We have to stop allowing the pressures of life and the planning of our future kill the spark that we had.

I believe that great things really do happen when you enjoy all that you have surrounding you in your present. When you are excited about life instead of acting like it is just another day…

• You are happier. You are creating space for surprise and wonder…things that make your heart race; make it smile. You can go beyond being happy and feel joy…something that cannot easily be taken away.
• You don’t worry about being good enough. You do what you can the best that you can and you leave it there. You’re not thinking about judgment. You know that you are doing your best.
• You allow your inner light to shine. You are living with confidence and being optimistic. Everything will not be and go perfect all of the time but you are looking for the good and how you can take that with you into the future to help you succeed.
• You feel more certain. You will feel sure that you are living the life that you are supposed to be living.  Things will not always go as planned but be sure that whatever you experience is supposed to happen in that season for a purpose. Have fun figuring it out and move forward with a purpose and optimism.
• You won’t have to work so hard on that fake smile. You won’t have to worry about fitting in or being anyone other than you! There is so much freedom in that. Nothing worse than having to “change faces” just to be in the room with certain people. We have all done that in our adult lives at one time or another.

We need to have courage…and be a little goofy and just enjoy these beautiful lives that we have been given. We should stay curious…awestruck and hungry for more. We shouldn’t even care if we look a little silly…so what! Loosen up and enjoy your days. Stop trying to look and be like everyone else. Look for the next opportunity to be awestruck…wowed.

Take a walk and talk to the cute little puppy out taking a stroll

Get excited about going to get an ice cream cone in the park

Bubblewrap (my family knows how I feel about that). Enough said

Anyway, drop your guard and have some fun. Open your mind. Be in the moment. We all deserve to set our inner child free, if only for a little while.

Adults can smile and laugh too!