Today is vasant Panchami/ Saraswati Pooja, The Hindu people worship the Goddess of Knowledge and Music Saraswati on this occasion.
As kids we used to wear yellow clothes, decorate the prayer room, the Goddess idol, keep the school books in the prayer room, to pray to God to bestow success in our studies,,,,etc... and also this day marked the change of season from Winter to Spring. There may be many more spiritual and scientific significance to the occasion and what is being done, but for me as a kid, it was fun and joy doing all this and am sure for all the kids around it was fun. The innocence the children had in those days made them believe that they would study well and sing well by celebrating this way.
I shared this to simply mention that in all the Indian cultures, traditions and festivals, of different religions relevant or irrelevant to today's time, generation of Google, there was this innocence in the kids, who believed things so literally without much of questioning.
The kids of today are perfect the way they are for this age, and I appreciate their logical thinking and smartness. I miss the simplicity and sense of wonder, the belief in miracles that we had.
My question was - What can we do as a whole, to support children be joyful and innocent?
What elements can we add as parents within us, in our daily life which can create fun in simple ways around us?
I am grateful to the friends who responded to my question and sharing here the answers I received from different people
We should share more positive news compared to news about the things which project the world to be a bad place to live in.
Parents should share short stories with moral values, and enact them to make it fun to hear and remember.
Photo comics, a friend shared a link to comics online, which can be shown to kids.
Cooking together as a family and each of them participating in some way.
Give them the freedom to choose
Genuine appreciation and showing ways to choose through indirect methods
Take kids out to parks, natural places, beaches etc... where they are in touch with nature and also play with them there.
laugh on silly things with the kids, they love it.
Be a kid with the kids, play around, fool around using pranks....
What if we could be parents out of the joy of being a parent and express the gift the children are to us? Would not beign thier best friend add more joy to their life than we being superior?
We should find joy and innocence in daily life, like our parents did in those days, Children learn from us
Just be you and spend time with them
Sing songs, dance with them, go out, play and share bed time stories
Do things for the fun of it, even if it may be stupid, being like a child for one day in a month and cherish those moments and responses.
First learn to be happy yourself, everything else will follow
A friend wrote it was fun to watch girls dressed up beautifully and a delight to eyes.
I may have missed a few answers, yet shared as many as I could.
One friend wrote to me in sadness " Being a kid... I was totally worry free, it was the best phase of my life, I remember playing with friends and doing all masti, was the best memories, playing luka chhippi, kho kho, throw ball and fighting with other groups of girls at school. As a kid you must enjoy being a kid, that life will never come back again. Feeling Nostalgic."
This made me for a moment really sad, then I just said - great u shared this, reflect on what u wrote and change everything to present tense, and how you can bring that energy back in the now.
then she wrote - " I am totally free and happy. it is the best phase of my life. I am playing with my friends and doing all masti. I am playing all sorts of games and enjoying. As a kid I am enjoying, being a kid, being myself. This life I am creating again and again, feeling blessed."
AND THIS WAS IT. I felt so amazing to read this and said to myself, can it not be so simple??? does it have to be so complex, being a responsible parent????
Well, I shared all answers, you may have your own answer, am not writing this to suggest anyone anything, this is to share the joy that i felt, writing what I wrote, sharing it with all, receiving all the answers, and reading this last one my friend wrote when she changed the whole nostalgic feeling of the past to feeling blessed in the present.
Life can be simple, when we are ready to live the simple joys of life, simply :)
Looking forward to more writing, sharing, questioning, receiving and enjoying being me, the kid or the grown up or the wise or the foolish, whoever I am :) Irrespective of whether I am a responsible parent or no, I prefer to be a Joyful parent, a happy being and allow my children to be joyful and happy too. And to be honest, I used to take my kids out to parks, I used to play with them, I used to laugh at silly things with them, i used to share stories with them, I used to sing and dance with them.... and also study with them, do projects with them, paint, sketch, do rangoli, cook.... everything I have done with my kids, and even stupid things, then what changed in me.... I started comparing myself with the other parents and felt guilty about being me and changed who i was to something I could not be and there the joy left me.
My request to the children and the parents, PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE STOP COMPARING YOU AND YOUR PARENTS WITH OTHERS. WE ARE ALL UNIQUE IN OUR OWN WAYS. NO NEED TO FIT IN. We can be responsible with having fun and being joyful simply by the fact that we are good the way we are and our children are superb the way they are. When ever change comes naturally from inside, then we can be joyful about the change too, rather than trying to force change. Changing for the sake of improving self or the children can be substituted by, Change is essential and as we grow we change naturally and we can be in allowance of the changes in us and in the children and support them to be joyful about the changes inside and in the environment.
Sharing genuine stories of fun and fear also, but along with that sharing that every fear can be overcome and how you did it as a kid, as a teenager, as a parent... all that allows them to know that you are human and you also have been through what they may be going through.
Again, coming back to being simple, no serious talks.... so there are already many things given above and you may ask yourself, what would you love to be and do as a kid, and do that with your kids :) Build your creativity beyond limits and Enjoy parenting.
rest for next.....signing off for the day
thatsbandana@gmail.com
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