As someone embedded deeply in my middle-aged years, I understand why people have the audacity to call me an “adult” or “grownup.” Chronologically, I am a woman of “a certain age,” so technically, the monikers apply. My philosophy on this subject is to only grow up as much as required in the given moment. And when that moment is done, by golly, I hightail it back to the land of joy, play, and wonder. I stay as long as I can. Not to tell you how to do your business, but I believe we’d all be a lot happier, a lot more often, if we all do as the adage says: “Don’t grow up. It’s a trap.”
Today, I want to offer you two activities you can do to put childlike joy into your life, even for a little while. And I want to offer that you don’t need anyone’s permission or approval for stolen moments of play, whether it’s an activity listed here or something else that catches your heart.
First… Color on notebook paper with crayons. Think stick figures, bubble clouds and treetops, a wonky circle sun with uneven triangle rays. Draw your picture however it comes out, then color it in with whatever colors make you happy. Blue sun? Great! Green grass even though it’s currently February? Even better. You color the happiest dang picture you can, then sign it, and hang it on your fridge with a magnet. Remind yourself it’s not all bills and responsibilities out here.
Second… Look at the clouds. I spend more time than I should care to admit staring at clouds (and floor tiles if I’m being really honest) and looking at random patterns, allowing my imagination to reveal animals, people, and little scenes. This past summer, an entire cloud cartoon story about a dog chasing a ball through adventurous situations and potential peril emerged to me over an hour, and all I had to do was lay in my hammock, look up at the sky, and open my mind. It was pure joy and healing, and it’s something anyone can do by just dusting off that sometimes forgotten imagination.
Remember imagination? It is the ability to turn a stick into a snake or a shoebox into a castle. Imagination is the creative engine of our youth that we are all born with. We use it constantly, until preparing for adulthood. Once the reality of “adulthood” arrives we’re
encouraged to box it up with mothballs and hide it on the tallest shelves in our emotional closets. See? It’s a trap.
Want to outsmart the trap? Unpack the wonder, friends. Escape for a while. Our imaginations are available to us our entire lives for a reason. We need it. Always.
Sara Middleton is a freelance columnist and resident artist/owner of Studio Sol Gallery & Creative Space in Eagle Grove, Iowa. Email her at sara.studiosol@gmail.com or find Studio Sol on Facebook or Instagram.
