Five pieces of gum at once

When was the last time you thought about what it’s like to be a kid? I mean truly. Not just like looking at your kid and thinking “I wonder what’s going on inside that little head of theirs?

As adults, we get so focused on the day-to-day logistics of life, and often forget about the wonder of it.

I recently came across this book entitled “Boys!” by William Beausay II. In one chapter he speaks to the way boys think to help parents empathize with their sons. (Girl dads, bare with me, this counts for you too.)

The ”Coles Notes” version of the chapter is this. As parents, we will never fully understand what our kids are thinking when we see them do something that we would see as irrational or illogical. But when we imagine ourself in their shoes and empathize with our kids, it becomes much easier to understand what they’re doing, why their doing it, and what they’re feeling why they do it.

❝

We all want to know what happens when you push the button.

Curiosity is an instinctive driver for all of us. "How does this work?” “Where does this path lead?" “What happens if I press this big gigantic red button that says DO NOT PUSH?” We all want to know what happens when you push the button.

Remember?

Here is a quick exercise that Beausay shares to help you transport back into your favourite little pair of velcro sneakers. After each phrase below, Stop and let your mind drift. Go back to these moments in your childhood and recall how you felt.

• Worms

• Hot summer days

• Pulling weeds

• Thunderstorms

• Five pieces of gum at once

• Walking to school

• Noises at night

• Your first grade classroom

• Feeling like you got away with something naughty

• Grandma and Grandpas house

It’s not a perfect science, but I have found the idea of stepping back and thinking about how the moments above made me feel brought back a spark of what it means to be a kid.

So as you head out on your adventures today, keep the feeling of “five pieces of gum at once” in mind. 😉