Sunday Thoughts: 3 Things We Should Learn From Our Kids

We take things very seriously. Kids, on the other hand, don’t. They take the easy way. The quick way to fixing a problem or reaching their goals. If they want to slide down the red slide, they will never take the green one. Logical, right? For example, last year at Emilian’s skiing race. The final goal was “whoever gets to the finish line the first, wins.” What did Emilian do? He went straight down, no slalom on sight. Risky, maybe a little, but most importantly, he didn’t go around in his thoughts. He did as was told; the first one down wins. Children take the easy way no matter what. They see life differently.

Don’t overthink it – Many times, we find ourselves thinking and overthinking the same matter too many times, to the point of being exhausted and letting it by the side. We forget to simplify the problem. Just like kids do. What do I want and what do I need to do, should be the two main questions.

Of course, problems change with adulthood. Our problems grow with us and eventually, it is not a matter of sliding down the green or red slide, our problems look more like “how will I manage to pay my bills”. But that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t use some of the strategies children use naturally while growing up.

If kids can do it, why can’t we?

Be an explorer – I was watching Emilian play while we were in the mountains, he had picked up on something he had never seen before, his facial expression said it all. He found something new, in a landscape he already knew very well. He had DISCOVERED something.

Do we do that though? Let me guess, not very often. We go by the same places over and over again but don’t bother looking into details. We don’t notice if there has been a major change in our own building or if the bakery on our street is closed every Sunday. We don’t look, we lose curiosity. We are either too busy or we hide behind our phones. It’s like someone took away our explorer spirit with the years. Shouldn’t we invest more time exploring?

Because if kids do it naturally, why don’t we?

Live it – Another thing I noticed is that they LIVE the moment to the fullest. When something amazing is happening, they dive fully into it. Mesmerized by what is happening. We adults, have too many things in our minds to ENJOY moments. Most times we even hide behind our tiny screens and allow a bunch of pictures to be more important than whatever is happening right at that moment.

Live goes by much faster than we think and most things happen only once in our lifetime. Life happens and we should live it to the very fullest.

Because if they do it, why can’t we?

There are so many things that can bring us adults back to childhood, especially when you have children. For example, what about a walk in the woods WITHOUT A PHONE. Yes, we used to do it back then even though it sounds somehow dangerous to do today. Maybe visit an escape room if you haven’t done it before, you will forget everything happening around you or the outside world. If you are in Vienna, visit ZOOM atelier at MuseumsQuartier and get lost while painting. What about a mystery hunt in your own city? Have you tried that before?

Making the “everyday stuff” different is key. If you can’t decide on where to go for dinner, toss the coin. If you are walking home, take a different way. Make it fun, new and interesting, just like kids do.

Because if they do it, why can’t we?

DEUTSCH

Kinder sind lebensfroh und nehmen das Leben leicht. Ganz im Gegensatz zu uns: Wir nehmen viele Dinge viel zu ernst … und machen uns das Leben unnötig schwer. Da könnten wir von unseren Kindern doch vielleicht etwas lernen. Zum Beispiel:

Nicht ewig lang nachdenken. Stattdessen handeln. Wenn Kinder etwas tun wollen, dann zögern sie nicht lange. Ihre einzige Frage: Wie komme ich am schnellsten und einfachsten ans Ziel? Versuchen wir doch, es den Kindern nachzumachen. Die Welt ist manchmal gar nicht so kompliziert, wie wir glauben.

Seien wir offen für Neues, für Entdeckungen. Kinder entdecken jeden Tag Neues. Auch dort, wo sie schon 100mal waren. Weil sie neugierig sind. Weil sie sich interessieren. Weil sie die Augen aufmachen. Halten auch wir die Augen offen, wenn wir durch die Stadt gehen. Schauen wir unseren Mitmenschen ins Gesicht … und starren wir nicht ins Handy. Bleiben auch wir neugierig; denn das Leben bietet zu viel – jeden Augenblick.

Kinder genießen jeden Moment. Sie sind voll dabei, was immer sie tun. Sie leben das Leben – in aller Fülle. Und wir? Wir lassen uns ablenken, wir denken an 1000 andere Dinge … und sehen nicht, was vor unseren Augen passiert. Sehen nicht die Schönheit eines Augenblicks, die Einmaligkeit des Geschehens. Hey, das Leben ist viel zu kurz, um es nicht in vollen Zügen aufzusaugen. Darum: Lebt euer Leben. Ihr habt nur eins.

Stellt euch vor, ihr geht in den Wald … und das OHNE Handy. Ihr erlebt den Wald! So wie damals, als ihr noch Kinder ward. Oder ihr stürzt euch in das Abenteuer eines Escape Room – und vergesst für eine Stunde die Welt. Warum nicht einmal eine Mystery Tour in eurer eigenen Stadt? Was ihr plötzlich alles entdecken werdet! Macht euer Leben interessant und voller Farben. Entdeckt. Seid neugierig und lasst euch überraschen. So, wie es eure Kinder jeden Tag neu erleben. Nur Mut!