Childhood, Revisited

This weekend, I volunteered with the Girl Scouts. I would like to say that I have a lot of flat out, pure fun but Saturday I got to be a kid at heart. To start, crafts. When was the last time I did crafts? Well, outside of being a resident assistant, I honestly can't remember. A birthday party when I was 10, maybe. Either way, came home with my own personalized picture frame - made out of tongue depressors, or as I like to call them, "Aaah sticks" from the doctor's office.

While the crafts were all fun and good, I like just going a little nuts with some physical activity too. It sort of happened as an accident. I was helping one of the girls bring her picture frame to the drying table and when I turned around, she jumped on my back for a piggyback ride. I started walking around the gym. Then she wanted me to go faster. There was an empty stretch on the sidelines so I started running. I might have bit off more than I could chew. That decision initiated a line of 8-year-old girls waiting for their turn. One girl at a time got up for a piggyback ride while the rest of the group raced me down the sideline and back. Eight-year-old kids are heavier than I thought. I got tired quick! Well, I took it up a notch...one girl on my back one on the front. I was alright for the run down, but when I turned around, I lost my balance and all three of us collapsed on the floor. No injuries. Laughter from all except for the supervisor. Whoops! Game over. It was fun while it lasted.

I wish that we could all have fun like that all of the time. Reckless abandon. I just want to live life to the fullest. Having fun just seems to become more and more complicated as we get older. When did that happen? I think back to a day when I watched my three younger cousins, entertained by a single balloon for literally two and a half hours. Something so simple. Such pure joy. Now, I think about how easily I get bored. I love the occasions when I get to return to that state of mind, simplifying life back into what it is meant to be, joyous and fun. Oh to be a kid again!