Remember when you were a kid? If you were anything like me, you were lost in a land of make believe, playing a myriad of games and having loads of fun getting absorbed in the moment.  Think back for a second and try to place yourself back on that prized bicycle or in that special tree house.  Can you resonate with that feeling?  How does it feel?  There really is nothing like playing with your childhood friends without a worry in the world.  Can you feel the lightness of the moment?  Can you feel your worries just drift away?  Can you feel the excited optimism and happiness that comes from hanging around your friends?  It drifts in and out, back and forth while the warm sun stands watch over whatever game you happen to be playing that day.

This carefree lifestyle we led as kids; this carefree feeling that anything was possible.  Where did it go?  You know there is no reason that you can’t tap back into that feeling.  Just because you are older doesn’t mean that it has to be lost forever.  We can learn a lot from children and how they carry themselves.  In all actuality, I think that to be able to regain that carefree, happy, optimistic, anything is possible feeling we had as kids is not only possible to regain, but it is a key component in maintaining our happiness, having a fulfilled life and creating and living out our goals and dreams.

How do we tap back into this feeling?  How do we regain that carefree nature that is open to possibility and being lost in the moment that kids have mastered?  Here are some suggestions…

–Go play.  It doesn’t matter what…just go play!  Grab a Frisbee and some friends and throw it around.  Play a board game with your grand kids.  Go shoot baskets at the local park basketball hoop.  It doesn’t matter what it is…just go play; get lost in the moment!

-Let go of the urge to “do”.  Let go of feeling like you always have to go do something.  Sure we all have responsibilities as we get older…family, work, etc.  But I am a firm believer that we create a lot of habits that aren’t really that important.  Identify them and let them go.  Watching too much TV?  Spending too much time on the internet?  Take some of that wasted time and go play!  Not only will you gain the benefits of playing but you will also release some of the weight and pressure of your perceived “need” to do something.

–Be in the moment.  Leave your to-do list at home.  Just focus on what you are doing at that very moment.  Let tomorrow’s tasks stay in the future.

–Hang around fun, positive people.   It’s as simple as it sounds.  Surround yourself with folks that already get it.  If you are hanging out with fun, positive people it is only natural that some of their energy and fun nature rubs off on you!

–Be open-minded.  Let go of any pre-conceived notions you have about yourself and what you are doing while you are playing.  Many of us try so hard to maintain certain images of ourselves that keep us rigid, sometimes stuck and closed-minded.  Be open to trying new things; be open to looking silly sometimes.  It can be very freeing and look out…you just might like the way you feel!

So please…take a step back down memory lane and see, feel and remember what it was like to be
a kid.  Not only will it provide you with a new sense of purpose, but it will help you lead a much happier and healthier life as you shed some of the mental and emotional weight that you carry.  Remember when you were a kid? 🙂