Child: Mumma, why do adults grow up?
Mom: We grow up because we stop learning. We stop struggling. We stop believing. When all of this happens, we grow up. We actually become egoistic. We begin to protect the sense of self because we have nothing growing in us and the fear of losing whatever there is forces us to grow up.
Child: Is it fun?
Mom: No, it isn’t. It’s full of fear, loneliness, ego and anger. It’s full of sense of false pride and fragile sense of self. It’s scary because you have to work hard to be serious and it’s worse because when something new happens, you don’t know what to do. So, you have to fight change, resist and criticise. You look foolish and then after a while no one cares about you. Because, you are too grown up and difficult.
Child: How can someone stop growing up?
Mom: It’s easy. You start learning again. You start challenging yourself. You put yourself through new skills and new experiences. You study, you play. Just live like a child, wondering, staring, learning. When you make mistakes, you say sorry and move on, one minute you fight and the next you begin to laugh again. Being like a child is the only way to stop growing up and begin to feel free.
Child: Why do adults ask us to grow up then?
Mom: They’ve forgotten the joy they felt when they were just children of God. When they were innocent enough to ask and simple enough to be okay when refused. Because, they’ve forgotten how easy it was to make friends and hug family members, they want everyone to grow up and be serious.
Child: Ma, why did you stop growing up then?
Mom: Because, you came into my life. You made me remember how much fun it was to laugh loudly. You made me remember how much I love lying on the grass outside and staring at the stars above. You made me fall in love with God’s beautiful world again. When you learnt something new, I learnt it too. You made me recollect that the world didn’t come with boundaries and boxes, it was our thoughts that were forcing this upon us. You made me remember I was limitless. That I loved to dance to loud music and slyly eat a piece of chocolate and be thrilled about it. You made me remember it was okay for me to make mistakes and ask for help. You taught me to walk up to someone and simply say hello because you felt like it. You helped me understand that if I didn’t know something or didn’t understand it was okay to ask questions, I didn’t need to pretend to know it all. You reminded me the world outside didn’t matter, what mattered was I was smiling. You showed me growing up was a waste of time.
You are the reason I became me again.