Growing Up Blows

Let's face it.... Growing up sucks.  You go from being that adorable child that everyone loved to an bitter and cynical adult.  The small things that once held joy to you like finding a four-leaf clover or chasing fire flies no longer appeal to you.  Instead of spending days laughing and having fun with friends, you spend days working.  Even if you're not at work, there's always work to be done around the house... Yard work, house work, cooking, caring for your own children, feeding pets, laundry, etc.  The movies you watched as a kid are now being watched by your kids and you're seeing hidden meanings and things you didn't catch as a child...

What's he REALLY smoking in that hookah??

Is she REALLY talking about tomato soup??

Things make more sense as you grow up, but at what cost?  Your innocence and child-like wonder?  Is it really worth being a "grown-up"?

When I was growing up, both my mother and my father would watch cartoons and Disney movies with me.  This is how I felt...

OMG THE COLORS!!  OMG THE MAGIC!!  OMG *LOVE*!!

That's what most kids in front of the TV are like, you know?  I wasn't an exception to that.  I used to think my mom and dad loved watching cartoons and Disney movies with me.  Well, in later life I found out that wasn't quite true.  This is how my mom felt...

She hated it.  I was banned from watching "Alvin and the

Chipmunks" because she couldn't stand their voices...

I must admit to feeling some major disappointment when I found that out.  I was probably around the age of 7 or 8 when her disdain started showing.  Later (around the age of 15 or 16) I found out how my dad felt...

Dad LOVED it!  He will STILL watch Disney movies with me and

I'm 22 and he's 46!  We embrace our inner children.

I want you to know that my dad and I have a very different way of looking at things.  We embrace our inner children.  Basically, we're grown up, but we only act like adults when we have to.  We both still think fart jokes are funny.  We laugh at people getting injured on TV.  We watch South Park together.  And those old movies that were cool when I was a kid have a TOTALLY different kind of humor to them now!! 

As for me, I still find joy in the small things.  I still notice little animal footprints in the dirt.  I still like to play in the mud.  I still notice all the different colors of the sky during the sunset.  I find myself noticing little things that bring me delight and joy that other people just.... Overlook.  Like the other day I saw a red balloon stuck in a pine tree.  That just tickled me pink, because I couldn't imagine where this balloon had come from!  I was trying so hard to point it out to my friend and she just never saw it.  Even when I pointed straight at it.  She finally got frustrated and said "only YOU can notice silly things like that..."

Yes.  I get joy out of simplistic things.  I know Santa isn't real, but I still get that "giddy child" feeling when I wake up on Christmas morning and my stocking has stuff in it.  Who says you have to let go of things like that just because you get older?  Sure, somethings like the tooth fairy you have to let go because one day you run out of baby teeth to lose.  But pass that joy on to your kids or nieces and nephews!  Don't let the wonder of childhood die.

Kids these days are exposed to so much violence now at such an early age.  Elementary school kids are bringing guns to school.  GUNS!!  When I was a kid we brought GigaPets to school!  Society is already doing it's best to strip children of their innocence before they're old enough to even comprehend what being an adult means.  Why continue that horrid process in the home?

Parents - Encourage you're children to be children while they still can.  It's the best thing you can do for them in this crazy messed-up world we all live in.

Scooter Out.