Sunday, June 17, 2012

Don't Lose The Magic!

Do you remember being a kid, and thinking that fairies, and leprechauns and unicorns were real? Me too. My mother never sat me down and explained that all of those things are fake, and to stop believing in them. She let me outgrow them naturally. And now, when she tells me about a book she just finished that I have to read, she doesn't say "It's about fairies, but those aren't real, okay?". She simply says "it was a great series, it's all about fairies and based in Ireland ". But these days parents seem to want their children to grow up way to fast. No one believes in magic, or allows their children to, anymore. It makes me so sad, not only for the child, but for the parents as well. One of my favorite things about being a parent, is being able to see the world as a child again. When my daughter sees fireflies, and says "Look Mommy! Fairies!!" I don't say "no Alyssa, those are just bugs". I say "Wow, would you look at that!". On Christmas Eve, when she sees a red light in the sky and says "Mom, look, it's Rudolph!", I don't correct her with "That's an airplane Alyssa." I tell her that she better get to bed then, because Santa must be close. My children will only be little for a short time. I'm in no hurry to make them grow up. My nine year old asked me the other day if it was "too babyish" to call me mommy. I told him he can call me mommy for as long as he likes, and I will never tell him he's too old. I'm certain that this will not cause him to still be calling me mommy when he goes off to college. I'm not concerned that Alyssa will drop out of school and move to Ireland to search for leprechauns, or that Lucas will run off in search of the elusive unicorn. But I am going to let them be kids, and keep that childhood magic, as long as possible. I, in turn, get to keep the magic awhile longer too. Children do grow up, they stop believing in magical things. But, if they are really lucky, they get to have children of their own. Then, for a little while at least, they can believe in magic again.