Before we learned how to do taxes and manage our finances, we all spoke a secret language made entirely out of curiosity and whimsy. So, exactly when did we forget how to speak it? When we were kids, imagination fueled our curiosity. It was everything that made us who we were. So why did this sense of whimsy leave us in the first place?
As kids grow up, society forces them into boxes, societal pressure, family pressure, school pressure. Everyone is pushing them to be better, but sometimes they are simply confused about what they really want to do. Then there are stereotypes: fixed beliefs that generalize people within a group while ignoring individual differences. Stereotypes rule our society these days. Men, women, infact everyone is affected by them. They force children to become people they never wanted to be, teaching them that everything that once felt normal is now childish or immature. Many adults eventually hide their true selves because of societal pressure and social norms.
As we grow up, the burden of responsibility rests on our shoulders. We become so caught up in life and its changes that we forget the very thing that brought us this far, the thing that kept us alive and full of joy. I think we forget that life isn’t just black coffee, stale bread, and suffering. Life is so much more than the pressure society puts on us, the expectations of everyone else, or even our own insecurities.
I think we spend so long surviving that we forget what it feels like to live. And I think not knowing how to live is okay. Being confused is okay because, I guess, we are all a little confused by the disorienting changes in life. Perhaps that’s what true maturity is: learning to live while still understanding the struggles of those who cannot. Not everyone knows how to bear the burden of responsibility.
Ever since I was a kid, I have always heard people telling children to “be realistic.” But I think the sentence “be realistic” is subjective, and the word “realistic” means something different to everyone. It can disappoint ambitious kids who want to make a change in the world, leaving them disheartened because, according to society, their dreams aren’t practical.
Society has a different idea of what is realistic and achievable. I think that’s one of the main differences between an adult and a child: an adult believes that life can be bitter and sorrowful, which is true, while a child believes that life can be joyful and whimsical, which is also true. I believe both are right. Life can be hard, but if we can persevere through difficult times and still find the strength to come out as kind people who don’t dim other people’s lights, then perhaps that is the real achievement.
You don’t let the darkness destroy you; instead, you learn that a star cannot truly shine without it.
I think it’s important to never lose your spark, even when others try to dim it. So now the real question is: during all the time we spent growing up, learning what is “immature,” what is “cringe,” what makes other people happy, and how to survive the stereotypes that rule our society, did we forget what it feels like to simply live?
Maybe growing up isn’t about losing our childhood selves. Maybe it’s about learning how to carry that sense of curiosity, imagination, and wonder with us while facing the realities of life.
Written by: Anaya Ali Shah – 6B