Finding time to play...

For those of you who are as of yet unaware, I am a grown man currently working a job I have no passion for simply to pay my bills. In this regard, I’m like 99% of everyone ever. But unlike most of the others out there for whom this is true, I am a genuinely happy person who is content with life on the day to day.

My secret? I allow myself to have “too much fun.”

About once a week, usually while I’m cashiering at work, I’ll actually have someone come up to me and tell me to my face “You’re having way too much fun.” This is something I’ve heard from co-workers, customers, and even friends while we are out and about. All of you probably don’t think too much about what you’re revealing when you say this, but it tells me worlds about you.

You, my dear fun starved friends, are all dangerously close to killing your inner child.

I don’t know what it is that people find so threatening about an adult being happy with the little wonders of the world. There is something terribly wrong with our society and its views on what constitutes adulthood. Any adult that takes joy in something simple is often considered “childish” or “a little bit off.” Fun fact, I’ve been told I’m both of these things while my name caller looked me straight in the eyes. Day after day, hordes of people allow the idea of time to corrode their inner essence until there’s nothing left but the wretched shell of a former innocent.

Well…I flat out refuse!

I am 23 years old, and I love to play with balloons. I think stickers are one of the best things ever invented, and I will make trips at 1AM to the nearest 24 hour convenience store for a good coloring book and a pack of crayons.

I am a college graduate, and I still use the force to open automatic sliding doors. I am convinced that I am a water bender as I have become quite proficient with making whirlpools in the sink, and blowing large bubbles when I wash my hands is turning into a regular sport.

I use hard earned money for my gas, tune ups and car insurance, and I still like to drive around pretending my car is a spaceship. I pull up next to semi trucks, make a big L with my arm, and I don’t stop pumping until I hear them blow the horn.

I am old enough to get minors into R rated movies, but I will still sing along loud and proud to any Disney movie from beginning to end.

I have enough experience to know that time should not be wasted, and I still choose to spend some of it talking to trees, birds and squirrels. I stop to look at bugs, flowers, shiny things, ugly things, things that smell, and things that make funny noises.

I use my own personal credit card to make purchases online, and when the package finally arrives, I spend an hour playing with the box.

I blow bubbles in my milk. I smile at the moon. I try to make the traffic lights change colors with my mind. I would rather teach my puppy how to climb up to my shoulders than to sit and stay. I draw faces on the presidents when I check if the bills are real. I make up words on a daily basis. I eat breakfast for dinner.

I find the time to play. And so should you.

Don’t allow yourself to fall away into the cold of being an “adult,” whatever the hell that means. Please take a minute of your Monday and remind yourself to live instead of just exist. If you ever find yourself thinking that you’re having too much fun, don’t fight it. If anything, I promise you that you’re not having enough.

Once they’re truly dead, not even inner children can come back. I believe that with every fiber of my being. So I don’t know about you, but I plan to live my entire life being happy. Even on the down days, there are small beauties that shouldn't go unnoticed. I want to so liberate my inner child that I end my life walking beside him into our next big adventure.

What about you?