The wisdom of a toddler

The older I get the more I admire toddlers…

A toddler is exploring the world full tilt while learning to set boundaries with their adamant “NO”. They are aware of their bodies needs and possibly interested in the needs of others, but with a perfect level of objectivity and reserve about whether those needs should take priority over their own. These little ones are learning to communicate with the world around them, but mostly they are marveling in their own perceptions, mental ramblings, sensory information and reveling in their world. The sheer delight of being. Marveling at the breeze and how it lifts their hair, and cools the drool on their chin. Intrigued by the softness of a cat and the pinch of misplaced pressure in their grip. They intuitively know to bask in the warmth of the sun‘s rays and also to fuss and fight to get out of it when it’s just too hot. They readily let us know when they have to pee, their pants are too tight, their shirt is scratchy or they’ve been sitting in a seat too long. All information lost in the corporate world, business meetings, and classroom lectures where seemingly more mature individuals are stifling the information that their body is giving them only to appear engaged, complacent and a team player.

I am glad that I am no longer a toddler with limited words to communicate my needs and wants or the thoughts that sparkle in my mind. Nor do I relish allowing others to dictate how my time flows, but alas even in the adult world this is often the case. So I try to give myself over to toddlerhood for at least a couple of hours a week. During this reprieve from adulting, the toddler in me gets to decide how it is I will spend my time. I find that these two hours of my week bleed out into many other areas of my life. They allow me to have the bandwidth for the needs of others, to hold a friend in need, to be flexible, buoyant. Over time, these forays into unstructured time in comfortable/ snuggly clothing are now a form of meditation on being. Being present with myself, grounded in my body: feeling the grass underfoot, hearing the leaves rustling, chirping of fledgling birds, hawks screeching

Watching the ant/ snail/ slug/ bee/ fly go about their busy day

Thoughts to the side

Breathing

Being

Here

May this practice center you and bring you the awareness that your needs, how you feel in your body and your environment are important to how you move forward in the world and show up for those in your life… the other 166 hours of the week.