The Spirit of the Child

A child's capacity for total concentration on a task at hand (building a sand castle, making a fort with boxes and blankets, observing ants marching into their colony loaded with bits of a crumb), and then finding overwhelming joy in it, is something we tend to lose as we grow older.

I believe (from personal experience) that a good portion of this is lack of attention, or, better said, lack of conscious mindfulness (not to mention our society's constant quest for the outer, the material, and all that which does not emanate from within).

Being conscious implies being aware of everything about yourself and everything that surrounds you. If you are conscious of your thoughts, but not of your surroundings, your state of awareness is not complete. You might very consciously be thinking about your problems and how best to solve them, but not see the natural beauty that surrounds you. You might very consciously be thinking about those same problems, but not be aware of the fact that your solar plexus is twisting in discomfort (as it always does when you think about that particular problem).

And of course being mindful implies being present. Being here and now. Being in this moment.

Therefore, we might say that conscious mindfulness implies being consciously aware of the here and now and using that state of being conscious to maintain yourself in the here and now.

Children might not be able to explain - cognitively - that they are doing precisely this, but that is what allows them their capacity for concentration and joy. It was Aldous Huxley who said: the secret of genius is to carry the spirit of the child into old age, which means never losing your enthusiasm.

Does your spirit still know how to be a child? If not, go somewhere, do something today that may not be useful, but does bring you joy. Perhaps you could take a walk where leaves have fallen from trees and collect some, just to revel in their colors and shapes. Perhaps you could walk on a beach and examine the intricacies of shells. Perhaps you could study snowflakes as they cling to the outside of your living room window, and marvel in the fact that none is the same as any other. Perhaps you could make yourself a delicious dish you have never tried to cook before. Perhaps you could buy a 1000-piece puzzle and put it together. Perhaps you could join an art class, a writing class, a photography class, in order to take up something you had forgotten you loved so long ago. Perhaps you could converse deeply with your pet, or plant new flowers, build a snowman, or skip and dance about your house in tune to your inner music (or if you have not yet remembered what it was, do the dancing in tune to music you can find on your CD player, radio, TV, or laptop/tablet. The possibilities are endless, and if you can't think of any, please just talk to a child, and ask it for suggestions!

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Also visit my book website: www.gabriellakortsch.com where you may download excerpts or read quotations from any of my books. My latest book Emotional Unavailability & Neediness: Two Sides of the Same Coin is available globally on Amazon in print & Kindle. You can also obtain it (or any of my other books) via Barnes & Noble.

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