Recently I saw a post on Substack that asked “why life couldn’t feel like childhood book illustrations?”. As I have often thought and wished for the same thing myself, it prompted alot of thoughts in me and inspired this post.
I’m reading alot of posts lately that speak of people’s longing for a return to the simple yet magical, slow and progressive, proactive, and peaceful, gentler and equally powerful. It’s a good sign after decades of treadmill rushing, fear and loathing, scrolling, overstimulation, exhaustion, and detachment. So let’s return and remember the magic of the world we left behind, the world of our favorite childhood books.
And my answer to the original question can’t life be more like childrens book illustration is this. It can be, it is and the magic key of returning and keeping alive this wonderland is as always, within us.
So:
Reread one of your favorite children’s book. For me, it was rereading The Lion The Witch and the Wardrobe, Beatrix Potter books, and Dr. Suess. Any book about animals, nature, adventure, great and small battles between good and bad or evil is a good choice because these books are about life, humanity, morality not just childhood fantasy. Sadly in this world, most of us are trained to leave our humanity in our childhood, as we learn to eqate cruelty, cynicism, doubt, silence and apathy with maturity and responsibility. It’s not of course, and we really need to undo those lessons to find the way to joy and life.
Right those wrongs! Cast aside the “rules” of coolness, conformality, normalacy. Feed the wildlife and smile and marvel at their existence. Keep all living beings off your plate and shopping list. Breath in nature where ever you can find it. Stop and smell flowers and say hi and thank you to the bees! Be kind to all you meet and embrace those momentary connections, the smiles, laughs and comfort shared with strangers online or in person. Make something beautiful, meaningful or necessary, being conscious of its footprint and aiming to use, waste less.
Love and nurture your kind and open to wonder self. Give love as freely to the world, and all its beings as you did when you still thought the world was all magic, goodness and light and it needed you as much as you needed it. Because you were right to love, value yourself, care, learn, explore, ask, create and experience wonder. You saw life as it is and that life is still and always will be here. Embrace it again and unlock the heart of human kindness, intelligence, joy and peace.
