Little Kids

I like children. Particularly the ones that are old enough to run, but haven't yet entered school. This isn't to say that I hate babies and all little kids who have reached kindergarten; they just aren't optimal. There is a simplicity that emanates from kids this age which gives me joy. They are old enough to understand what is going on around them, but young enough to still be naive. It makes me forget that there are bad things in the world and that I have problems that need to be taken care of. Sure, there are the little kids who are super grimy all the time, have the boogers dripping down their noses, and the super long, dirty nails that they are always scratching you with--but their mindset is simple. Here. Now. Fun.

Of course, this is not a mindset that works for the rest of one's life. Maturity must be reached to realize that you have to prepare for the future, and you can't always be having fun; this ideology works really well for little kids though. It gives them innocence.

They aren't worried about what you think of them, they don't think bad of you if your tongue slips on a sentence, of if you are rolling around on the ground with them getting dirt on your clothes. They don't even notice if you are dressed differently than is fashionable, or look a little strange compared to everyone else. They just want to have fun, and they haven't yet experienced the knife of betrayal or the taint of societal norms. Everyone is their friend and they trust everyone.

Kids who have reached kindergarten aren't so naive anymore. They realize that they have to compete for attention and resources, and that there are some things which are inappropriate to do to other people. Important lessons, yes, but the competition turns into a mini-gang war where cliques and outcasts are formed. They start to purposefully do mean things to each other, and this is cultivated by the messages in movies that kids are seeing earlier and earlier. They try too hard to act like adults when they should just enjoy their young years. Adults have to make hard decisions, little kids shouldn't.

I'm not sure why, but little kids always seem to gravitate towards me. I don't see what it is that makes kids want to be around me, but they do. I'm not particularly smiley all the time, and I don't always carry candy around in my pockets. Even if I did, I still wouldn't share it. It could be the age that I am right now. Maybe there is something intuitive inside them that sees me and says, "Look, there is a big person. Big people know what life is about, but this one--he isn't as grumpy as all the other big people. He still knows how to have fun. He is like me."

It's a bummer because once they grow up some more, experience work, pain, sickness, rejection and betrayal, they will begin to harden. Suddenly, they begin to judge you and your actions. These things aforementioned are necessary for growth in life, but even I am still losing a little bit more innocence every day. I wish it wasn't so.