Doesn’t it astonish you how innocent you are when you are a kid? So naive that you barely think of people around you. Life gets a new adrenaline rush each time when you decide to initiate a task.

 

Stuck in the chaos of my mechanical lifestyle trying to reach to my ultimate goal. I was invited to join a bunch of cool personalities on a long weekend trip to a lake house in New Hampshire and I, in no way was letting this opportunity of living life slip away.

 

Mesmerized by the beauty of Ossipee Lake in New Hampshire with the perfect summer sun, the blue warm water, and amazing company, I was inspired to kayak for the first time ever in 25 years of my existence. After a few quick kayaking lessons and understanding the law of what I laughingly called “water dynamics” I decided to go for a kayak by myself and unwind the mystery of the big lake. I was curious to explore the natural beauty around but little did I know that I will end up exploring the most important lesson of life. Breezing in the shallow woody snaky channel of water I started thinking how the making of tools made the man so different from others, how I am kayaking on a lake trying to explore little tweaks and corners. I started comparing it to the man’s expedition to find a new land, discovering places like America and India and mapping out each and everything that exists. Wondering how a man’s vision, curiosity, and child-like pure passion made this world what it is today! And if our ancestors had been scared of failure these expeditions would have never happened.

While kayaking I got tired in the middle of nowhere, not really knowing what the end destination is. Hands tired of rowing (I am not a person who works out). The thought of giving up and turning back became almost constant. It required me to really believe in whatever the end destination will be; it will be worth the experience. I knew, in the end, I will have a sense of satisfaction which I will carry with me for a very long time. But that is only if I reach the end. And this is the time I realized the lesson of life, the lesson to be like a kid, to not think about the end but to enjoy the journey to reach the end.

When you are a kid, you are happy, curious, passionate about doing stuff without wanting something in return, which is astounding, but the most wonderful part is that you enjoy your journey. Each and every minute, every step, every milestone – small or big – you enjoy every single bit of it. You express your emotions and you are not afraid to be upset, angry, or disgusted, but you enjoy it. And that’s what I decided to do, instead of just rowing like a machine I played some music, enjoyed the trees and the mountains, I started looking at the waves and once in a while just used my hands to interact with the waves. I noticed the corals deep in the waterbed, water lilies and green rocks. The algae’s, pebbles, sand and grass everything was perfectly beautiful. When I was tired, I just stopped. I did nothing, in the middle of the lake, purposely losing my direction as if I didn’t care. I was like a kid. I was like me. I knew I want to reach the end, but I knew the journey needs to be jubilant, I knew the experience is what will make it memorable and I realized that I am not a slave – slave of time and purpose. It is my life; my time and I can do what I want at my own pace. There is no competition, no race. I experienced the freedom and it was a beautiful feeling. I did manage to reach the end. It was a sensational accomplishment; I remember the first sight when I could see the destination, a rush of happiness and satisfaction running in my body, but soon realized the only thing mattered was the journey – journey made it a lovely experience. I recall how I enjoyed every bit of it, the green trees, the blue sky, the yellow sun and the life-giving water. I also enjoyed me being me, I could feel that I was not alone, I was with my soul- my pure childish soul!

 

I truly believe that the best way to live is to live like a kid. Of course, we may not get as much spare time these days as we did back then but whatever little do we get, live it to the fullest. Awaken the kid inside you and do what your heart tells you to do; ask stupid questions and a million times. Stop worrying about being judged. Go on a trek without questioning the weather. Dance your heart out to a song that peps you up. Even at work, just for once, stop worrying about the world and listen to the kid inside you, be curious to explore, fearless of the end goal and enjoy the work and you will see how efficient, productive and delightful your work becomes. You will have a much better working experience. With the aura of that of a kid, you will cherish each and every moment of it. You will realize that just when you start listening to the kid inside you, you can find a solution to any problems that you are facing in the most amusing way, creating splendid memories of you with yourself.

I am sure everybody out there has done a lot of crazy stuff as a kid. Be it those fearless stunts or some bizarre expeditions, even today they manage to motivate and inspire you. Share those with me. Tell me how do you interact with the kid within yourself? How do you try to keep your inner kid alive?

 

Reach out to me at: ananyajain03@gmail.com

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Edited by: Ankita Bhatt