Growing Up

Growing up is an interesting phenomenon. I have always thought why as kids we were so curious about the world around us. I remember how I asked all kinds of absurd questions to my father when I was around 5 – 15 years of age. I was a super curious child, had doubts about almost everything; Why is milk white in color? Why are all the leaves of a tree of the same shape? Why can't we understand animal sounds? Why do people die? These questions seem pretty deep now but at that time I just blurted them out and my father always had graspable answers for me. As a child we never really worry much about consequences of being extremely original and outright. This gradually fades away with age if not maintained.

Growing up is a matter of state of mind. It is rightly said we are as young as we feel. I am fascinated with the changes in me during this process of developing mental maturity. I have felt happiness in certain situations which denote I did grow up mentally from what I was. This post is dedicated to those small realizations I underwent in daily life, which might point out gradual evolution from being puerile to grown up. 

These small things did bring joy and helped me to see the brighter side of maturity.

Some of those are mentioned here: 

• Keeping calm and smiling off criticism. It takes courage to hold back when people condemn you. This reminds me of Lord Buddha. A man used to insult him often, but Lord Buddha never felt offended or replied back. On being asked the reason for being so calm, he simply replied : 

     "If someone gives you a gift and you refuse to accept it, to whom does the gift belong?"

     #SarcasmAlert

• Waiting patiently in a queue and not getting frustrated easily. But this might drastically fail in case of internet queuing or waiting for the loading to complete. 

• Taking responsibility and finding solutions on your own. Blaming others doesn't lead you anywhere rather makes you powerless over your own life.

• Radiating positivity. Making the best of what you have and never forgetting how awesome you can be.

• Sorting out the inner conflicts and choosing the very first solution popping in head. Believe it or not, the first ones are mostly right.

• Not getting emotionally attached to material possessions and prioritizing experiences rather than mundane objects. Clinging on to things makes it tough for us to cope up with the transforming world.

• Avoiding assumptions about people before knowing them and giving second thought before criticizing. Preconceived notions will always lead to disappointment, be it about assessing a person or situation.  

• Making your own life-fundas. If you don't have your own experiences you are not living it right.

• Being independent and self sufficient in your journeys. Handling things your own way makes you feel stronger and grown up.

All these were felt and cherished by me in recent times. May be they don't actually show that I am mature enough but it’s good to be on the right path. We are taught by our parents till a certain age and gradually we learn things on our own, finding our own paths. This reminds me of my father teaching me to ride a bicycle, he held the cycle from behind not letting it fall and I gradually paddled. I paddled for a few minutes and didn't even realize that he was left behind and I was on my own. So, we grow when we hold the handles strong, keep ourselves focused and paddle away with positivity. Falling down once in awhile will make us stronger and go farther.