Hello👋 folks, Shubham here.
I am back with another edition of Soul Letter 🗞
Yesterday during one of my saunters I saw a young girl strolling along with her mother.
There was a conspicuous difference in the body language of our two companions.
The girl was scurrying as if chasing an imaginary unicorn while her mother was trudging along, lost in her thoughts.
Suddenly, the girl came to a halt. She looked down, and the smile on her face grew exponentially.
Out of curiosity, I stopped, eager to uncover the findings of the life-vibrant soul. Because what could trounce an imaginary unicorn?
She started bouncing while shouting “MOM! It’s a circle! Circle, circle!! ”
On receiving no response, she turned around and gestured to her mother that she was standing on a circular manhole.
Probably even Newton wasn’t as thrilled as her after discovering Gravity.
However, her mother wasn’t so keen and gestured for the little one to move ahead.
Obediently, our little angel went back to her Utopia and skittered along.
The incident left me with a smile but also with an interesting question.
‘Does the child within us die as we grow up?’
After pondering on this for a while, I conclude the answer is a NO.
Yes, we turn taciturn with time, living by the socially acceptable norms, and rarely expressing our authentic emotions.
But there are instances where the inner child makes appearnce in the real world.
Let’s have a look.
Alone Time
Solitude isn’t everyone’s cup of beverage, yet it’s inevitable. We all end up alone for at least a few moments in our day.
No one to judge. No rules to abide by.
One can say or do anything a.k.a freedom.
That’s when our inner child takes over.
Taking weird selfies, imitating Michael Jackson’s Moon Walk, pretending to be an Avenger, or perfecting John Cena’s You Can’t See Me.
The inner child lives a brief, colorful life before crawling back into the rabbit hole.
Theme Parks
Theme parks are crazy. With all the bedlam, it’s hard to know who is the kid.
Toddlers act more civilly compared to adults.
People screaming on flying roller coasters, savoring mammoth cotton candies, posing with human incarnations of cartoons—this world is made for the inner child.
Adults don’t do well here.
Just hearing about Disneyworld brings a big smile to any face (doesn’t it?).
Sports
There’s a running joke among my friends when we play badminton, while hitting the birdie we pretend to be tennis players, yelling with each shot (lame, I know).
Sport is a great example where the inner kid comes alive.
“My Ball My Rules” is the universal rule followed throughout the world.
You will expect people to play with grace and honor, but that’s not how the inner kid functions.
I have been part of football matches where people scored goals using their hands, and both parties accepted it. Imagine ten guys in their mid-twenties playing football and no one questions goals being scored by hands (I probably need some new friends).
Rules make things boring, and the inner kid is anything but a bore.
Movies
Watching a Pixar movie has a higher chance of curing my ailments than that of a drug.
What is it about animated movies that get us going?
Buzz Lightyear saying "To infinity and beyond!" or Lightning McQueen yelling “Ka-Chow!” is like music to the ears.
Like sports, it is a portal to our childhoods.
Horror movies too, bring back our inner child although against their wills (funny, how the adult us flees when it’s needed the most).
Alcohol
The most embarrassing stories have one thing in common – alcohol.
Drunk people do stupid stuff.
Do you know who else does stupid stuff?
Children.
Alcohol is like an elixir for the inner child. Booze doesn’t only rejuvenate but also amplifies its powers.
Hit a pub on a weekend to witness uptight corporate flaunts acting all giddy and dancing like penguins.
Infants
Here is the last one.
Have you seen how adults act around infants?
It’s as if someone flips their spiritual switch.
They behave goofily, make faces, dance fanatically, and a few eerie ones even hold conversations.
I have seen the strident ones turn to Jim Carrey while handling kids.
It seems the inner kid can’t run from the real one.
The Inspiration
I took the above photo in May’18, that’s when this idea was incepted.
There was an election briefing at our college, for which many police officers came.
During the breaks, all of them joined us to play cricket. It was kind of unusual because there is a deceptively gloomy image around them.
In public, we rarely make eye contact or speak to a police officer to avoid any fuss.
Therefore, it was strange seeing them with their child-like exuberance.
How often do they have time to play cricket like this?
Since then I wanted to write something about this. Glad it’s finally out!
In the end, I would just like to leave you all with this little reminder, ‘I know we all are growing up but that doesn’t mean we should stop having fun :)’
Hope you enjoyed this edition.
Signing off for today :) Until next time, Houdoe! 🙋♂️
Previous Soul Letters 🗞
This was so so good, I couldn't stop smiling while reading the whole piece. And also craved for the theme park as I have never been to one 🥺 whereas being around kids and sports definitely brings out the child in us.
Kudos to you for bringing out this beautiful newsletter. And I wish I could have seen those policemen playing cricket ( rn, imagining those strict faces having some fun )
Anecdote of that little girl brought smile on my face too. I can really relate to it when I see children around. They transmit a different kind of energy. As always..keep writing bhai :)