Celebrate Your Inner Child
01.06.2022
Every year on June 1st, in my native country is celebrated the International Children's Day.
If the same is observed in your country today, I am sure you won't let it go without holding dearly your kids and wishing them best, irrespective of the age of your kids.
For celebrating them, their joy and the free spirit of the childhood feels always good.
Are you one of those grown-ups who will congratulate their adult friends and family only “as a joke” on this day, and consider the real party is just for the little ones?
And while pretending you are "joking" and giggling at the idea of reliving the freedom of the kid for at least 5 minutes, to be surprised to receive the visit - right out of the blue - of the joyful essence of that kid you were once?
Then, at the end of this very day, to revert to the serious you and to push away for another year, even though gently, that joyful kid with his contaminating energy?
You are not the only one. Many adult people do it, too.
After all, you grew into a very responsible and disciplined person, you had to overcome sometimes significant obstacles, and demonstrated your ability to show grit and determination in reaching your objectives.
And, since you know that a mature person cannot be neither careless, nor happy without a "good" reason, you decide once more to hide, to leave away or to disconnect for another year, from your inner child. At its best, this decision comes as a tacit acceptance of the reality of life, and as a gave-in to what is acceptable in our society.
This way, it is easier to be responsible, to keep going, to endure or to make sacrifices.
Because you know that nothing comes easy. And you need to fight, and you need to push or you need to always pay attention and to be prepared. And you must achieve, and you must have, and you must be, and you must reach.
Therefore, you have so many important expectations from yourself and others.
No wonder tension and stress accumulate in you.
You carry these expectations - yours or others - as if all are legitimate and equally significant to you.
You cannot let them go, because you feel like they are your real drive to build or create important things. In your expectation that will matter for others, for your kids, for the people you manage, for those you are responsible for. They are lucky they have you around! This is your personal quest!
And, in spite of the stress or the fatigue you slowly shroud in, you feel motivated by the pressure, the expectations and your huge aspirations.
What is the link between your inner kid and this huge pressure you put on our shoulders?
What if I would tell you that all that pressure, all those expectations, all that stress lie also on the shoulders of your inner kid?
Because that inner child didn’t go anywhere. It is only the adult-you who forgot it is there. That kid is quietly and patiently waiting in a corner of your soul, for the adult-you to acknowledge and encourage him to visit more often.
Today, I have a gift for you: a re-discovery exercise. You can practice it anytime.
When was the last time you looked at THAT one picture from your childhood?
You know exactly what picture I am talking about: your childhood favourite picture revealing your true essence. The one you like most for you were happy, confident, witty and energetic, letting clearly to be shown your genuinely curious mind and generous soul.
Take that picture out from the dusted album with yellowish pages!
- Can you see how perfect that kid in the photo is?
- What qualities do you see in his eyes? Write them down. Look again into the eyes of that child, and write at least 10 qualities you see. You already know them, there is no need for any analysis. Just observe and write down. It is your list, nobody is looking.
- What is his attitude reminding you of?
- Can you see how gifted this kid is?
That kid still lives somewhere in you. That kid never disappeared for good.
Read again the list of qualities you re-discovered in your childhood picture. Those qualities are your inner resources, still living in you. Some got well-rounded over time, others perhaps a bit rusted for not having been in use for a while, but still yours. You are now in touch with all of them!
- If the adult-you would allow the little-you to talk, what secret would the little-you have to tell?
- What did the little-you inspire YOU to do differently? Or perhaps to stop doing?
- And what piece of advice would you give now to the little-you?
- How would you advise him to live differently?
Celebrate this kid today!
It is there, alive and serves you as a reminder of how gifted and perfect you are at your essence.
This picture is your reminder that your true essence is worth your unconditional caring, empathy, attention and understanding. You need no huge achievement nor others' opinion about you to have value, to be worthy of your own or others’ understanding and love.
This picture will remind you of one strong power you carry all the time in you: your empathy.
It will remind you not only what empathy means, but how empathy feels when it is genuine and offered. And will connect for you the concept of empathy with the strong feeling of acknowledging and appreciating the intrinsic value in you.
It is only when you make this connection, again and again, with ease, with love, understanding and appreciation for both your inner-child and the adult person who you’ve become and see value and beauty, you learn to manifest empathy, fully and truly, for the people around you.
Only then you will be able to really see the nature and potential of others and of yourself, to suspend judgement and to create a nurturing environment for people in your circle and include yourself in it.
No external validation is required there for anything. Because everything you need is already inside you, patiently waiting for you to reconnect with your true source and nature.
Enjoy your special reconnection day with your inner-child! Enjoy your discovery! Enjoy who you are and who you know you can still become!
If you find this exercise useful, write and share with me what amazed you most in reconnecting your inner child? What did you re-discover? What would you like to bring more often from this experience in your daily life?
If you remain a rational non-believer of the existence of the inner child, write and share with me too. I am always fascinated by your view. Tell me what is your voice of reason whispering to you when you look at your childhood picture you appreciate the most?
Wish you a colourful celebration of all the kids, young and old, in your life!
Many happy returns on this day!
I thank you for being part of my world.
Until next,
Alina Florea,
Your mindset trainer
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