Walking in the rain in the mountains yesterday, my friend Iole and I engaged in a conversation around engaging with life, and going where the fear is. Scary concept for so many, doing the thing that scares you. But why should it be scary? What’s out there challenging us from doing this things we want to?

As adults in this society, we get very caught up in not only what our peers think of us, but also what virtual strangers may thing of us. We are tweaking our posts, adjusting our clothing, doing up our faces, and acting in a way that we will be best viewed by the outside world.

The thing is the outside world are too busy doing the same thing to care that much. Everybody is lost in their own little world of showing off. And those that do take the time to judge you aren’t worth paying any attention to.

I get caught up in the same spiral. Let’s face it, we all want to put our best foot forward and be seen as the bright shining stars that we are. Here’s a little secret; the world will see your light regardless. You simply need to be yourself. Chase your dreams, follow your heart, do the things that sing to your soul. Connect to your child again. That child that is naturally curious, naturally adventurous, naturally playful, that child who does things just because, that child who pushes boundaries simply because they are there, that child who is happiest barefoot and dirty. Be that child again.

“Why?” you may ask.

Well. Just because. 🙂

Just because it’s fun and life is about enjoyment. Life is too short to waste time on bullshit. Life is about playing. Yes, of course, we want to be secure, have a great income, a nice home, a loving family, do fulfilling work while we are absolutely enjoying life every day! And all that is part of the journey. The question to ask yourself is whether you really are happy in your romance right now. Are you happy with your level of income, with your work, with your life? And if you aren’t, what’s stopping you?

For most people, it’s fear. Fear of admitting failure. Fear of the unknown. Fear of not being good enough. Some fear around ending the one situation or around starting something new. Here’s where young children offer such valuable inspiration. They move on quickly. When they’re bored or tired of something, they leave it. When it’s destroyed or taken away, they may cry and fuss but they get over it in moments and then find something else to focus on. They don’t care what people think about them, and that is the key.

We grow up moulded into people who act in a way that supposedly satisfies other people. What will my parents think, what will my friends think, what will my neighbours think, what will my Instagram followers think. Then we spend so much time getting back to being real, back to the place where we are living for ourselves first. That’s where the magic is. Live for yourself. This is what authenticity is all about. This is where the joy is. This is that child-like state where we return to being curious, filled with wonder and awe, reaching out for new adventures instead of clinging to the old ones, filled with trepidation and stagnant. Reignite the passion. Find your joy again in everything you do. Make the world one big playground again.

And if you think that playing more goes against your goals of making rent and keeping the grocery cupboard stocked, read the continuation of this piece on my Creation.begins website.