What does "living the simple dream" mean to me?

I always hear people from our generation saying "Ahh, living the dream" when they are doing somthing our of the ordinary - for example: sipping cocktails in a spa of a fancy resort or perhaps they post "living the dream" as the caption beneath a photo of them moving into their new $500,000+ mansion-esque home they have just mortgaged their life away for. At first I was confused by how simple my ambitions were. All I wanted was to live in a caravan and be able to spend as much time enjoying the outdoors with my husband and son, without my husband having to be at work all the time. So for me, this became my simple dream. I find myself having those "Ahh living the dream" moments when I am sitting in a natural hot spring with my husband and son, drinking a beer, ten feet away from a crocodile infested river. Now mine, my husbands and my sons life is all about chasing our simple dream.

Sunday, November 13, 2011

Positive thinking by seeing the world through the eyes of a child.

I was walking on the beach with my two and a half year old son this morning. We were wandering around sifting through the sand for shells. I would search and search to find the prettiest, most perfect unbroken shells then I would pick them up and show them to him and talk about how beautiful they were, their color, shape and size. Eventually he began picking up shells too and genuinely exclaiming over their beauty, describing their colors and talking about how special he thought they were. He seemed in awe of the shells and their beauty, which was wonderful.


Then came an extremely humbling realization, all of the shells he picked up were broken, faded, cracked or simply just tiny fragments of what I am certain would have been magnificent whole shells prior to them breaking down. Yet to this small boy unaffected by the emotions and opinions of the adult world, these fragmented shells were of extraordinary beauty and were just as special and worthy of collection as any of my perfect handful that I so carefully selected.

 I know it's a completely unoriginal idea to try and asses your surroundings, the world you live in through childlike eyes with only childlike opinions but I have to say, to me, this was the most clear example of that concept I could ever have experienced. To me this was not just a beautiful moment but a fundamentally important life lesson. A lesson about the obvious need to slow down and really experience the world. It was also a lesson about allowing yourself to soak up beauty in all of it's natural forms not just the refined images presented by the media.

When you look at the world through childlike eyes and you process it through a childlike mind it's like attaching a sieve to your brain, the horrible things, the problems, the constraints of time and financial obligations cease to exist. Suddenly stopping to smell the flowers along the side of the pathway becomes more important than than arriving at your destination on time. putting chocolate cake mix on each others noses and licking it off through fits of giggles becomes more important than baking the perfect cake and eating it after you have finished all your vegetables. Suddenly the concept of fear of death or illness dissipates and you begin to experience the rejuvenating feeling of childlike energy and young blood pulsing through your veins.

  
You let go of all the pain and sadness and even though it's momentary, it's blissful and reassuring. Faith is restored and subconscious storage areas within your being are topped up with love and excitement and positivity. Your dormant imagination is slowly ticking back into action and even though the cogs are creaking the motions are taking you further into a captivating world of innocence and fun.

Exploring the world and accepting it into your mind with childlike innocence seems so foreign and difficult to many people, and even to those who see it as simple - implementing it into their lives rarely proves as simple as it seems. Were naturally inclined to over think things especially when we know they have the capacity to change our lives for the better. But as with any healing or enlightening change, you should allow it to naturally flow into your life. Don't try to remind yourself to focus on adapting the changes into your life. Don't think at all, just slow down. Walk a little slower, look a little wider, hug a little longer and chat a little 'sillier'.

1 comment:

  1. Gosh he is such a cutey! I love how kids are so smart, and so good at seeing life through different eyes :)

    Wonder when we lose the innocence that kids have....wonder when we see life different?

    Cheers
    Lisa

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