The Child Within

     I got that look from my daughter again the other day. It is the look that says: "Dad, will you please just act your age?" You see, my daughter is growing up fast and is on her way to becoming a beautiful, young woman. Even though she is still a teenager she already has the maturity and wisdom of an adult. I, on the other hand, have been busy enjoying my second childhood ever since my first one ended. It seems strange to my daughter then that sometimes she appears to be the older and more grown up of the two of us.

     What my daughter doesn’t realize, though, is that I used to be a child, teenager, and young adult myself. I can distinctly remember what it was like to be each one of them. In fact, all three of them still live on inside of me. I can still choose to be anyone of them I wish. While I know then that I have to be an adult most of the time, I also know that being a child is a lot more fun.

     Children are so much closer to their love. Children are so much closer to their laughter. Children are so much closer to their joy. Children are so much closer to their light than we adults are. They seem to know instinctively what most of us have forgotten: that God loves us and wants us to be happy in our lives here. That is why no matter how old, tired, and wrinkled this body of mine may get, inside of it there will always beat the heart of a child. Our souls may be eternal, but I see no reason why they can’t also be forever young.

     Don’t be afraid to live with the joy of a child. Don’t be afraid to love with the heart of a child. Don’t be afraid to laugh with the delight of a child. It is your childlike soul that will light the way to the Kingdom of Heaven. It is your childlike heart that will bring you to oneness with God. It is your childlike spirit that will fill your life here with happiness. Let the child within you out then. You may get that look from time to time, but the joy is worth it.

~ Joseph J. Mazzella ~

[ by: Joseph J. Mazzella (joecool@wirefire.com) -- {used with permission} ]