Written and posted by Jackie Olmstead, June 25, 2022 – A little boy I met at the pool recently said to me, “Eeehh! I just pee in the pool…” and continued with telling me another story about his toys and which ones were his favorites, which ones his friends would tend to hog and then ran off to go to the bigger pool to find his Iron Man toy. I was beginning to tell him before this that the community bathroom was locked and we’d have to go all the way around the building to go to the bathroom, when he interrupted me with this knowledge.
It occurred to me like someone had just lifted a major law of the land that: As everyone tries their best to do the right thing, to help people, to call their parents as often as they can, to buy the healthiest food, or just be the best kind of human being you can… sometimes they just end up peeing in the pool anyway. So why are we stressing about it or trying so hard anyway?
I laughed out loud with the boy and he laughed too, thinking it was great that I found his comment so humorous. Somehow it was freeing to hear that other humans on this planet weren’t perfect either.
Because I felt such a strong insistence on doing the right thing my whole life, it’s been so gratifying to see and hear others not always being that way either.
I nodded as I walked away as life continued around me while I savored this funny boom of a comment in my mind.
“People just end up peeing in the pool anyway.” Why do we think that no one else is sometimes taking shortcuts? Or just being human? Or just not worrying as much about what it is we think is being perfect?”
Musings from the seven year old elevated my psyche and made my own inner seven year old feel a little more free that day.
The beauty of just living our lives, not stressing over the smaller details that every single action and thought that crosses our minds will hinder or hurt others around us. I’m not talking about actually doing things deliberately to hurt or have a disregard for others at all.
What things have you been holding on to in order to be perfect in your own life? I don’t know, like do you feel like you HAVE to clean the toilets in a certain amount of time or bad things will happen? Deep down? Silly example, but what if you skip it one time, do it at a totally different time or day? …to do something else that makes you even happier in that moment, to mix up your rhythm? Nope, I’m not encouraging you to stop doing the things you need to do.
I’m asking you to look at your daily habits and feel inside which do you make yourself a little crazy over. It goes along with the thoughts of “What if I drive a different way to work all week this week? What if I just did my routine a bit differently? What will happen to my energies around my creative psyche?
I’m going to tell you that your inner child will smile at you. Think you are crazy and they will love it. They will giggle. Because I believe our inner kids think we have become really really BORING as adults. Guess what? You probably HAVE become boring.
I do from time to time realize that my routines need to be shaken up a bit to remember what’s important. When I drive to my usual destinations but on a different route, I see neighborhoods perhaps that I’ve never seen before or that have changed since the last time I was there.
Businesses have closed down, moved or look different. Or they have survived this stupid lockdown craziness from the last two and a half years, and I applaud them out loud, “Yeah! Oh thank goodness they are still here!” or “Oh $hit, oh no, when did they close down?”
I sincerely implore you to take your time in freeing up your creative, younger you simply by doing the adulting thing differently. The energies HAVE to change when you do this. A shift happens whether you actually intended it or not. Or like it. It’s a beautiful thing, being human and being open to the joys that we often miss every day. They are there. You just don’t see them anymore or forgot.
I love you. Have a beautiful day today, my friend.
Namaste.
Earth Momma, Jackie O
p.s. By the way, I will be “sponsoring” really beautiful artwork pages that will include my own designs on Fine Art America’s website. Today I’m posting the page for iphone cases from the site that includes my own designs!
