Some Things Never Change

Okay, so my first post was a little melodramatic and tad accusatory, but don't worry, I only write like that every once in a blue moon. But this kind of continues from yesterday, cause I ran into another example of childhood innocence today. Since it's spring, pollen is literally everywhere. No matter where you go it looks like yellow is a very popular color this season cause absolutely everything is covered with the stuff. Now, I've been blessed with having no allergies what-so-ever, but the rest of my family wasn't quite so lucky and they're all having to get drugged up before even stepping outside to get the mail.

Anyway, even though our car is already gold, the extra yellow powder isn't too appealing so my dad finally decided today was car wash day. I had been in my room watching shows on Netflix this morning when my 13 year old sister burst into my room, panting from excitement. She told me there were three super amazing things she had to tell me. The first was that my dad had bought us Krispy Kreme donuts for breakfast (the chocolate creme, or custard filled taste like heaven!), then the second was if I pulled on my shoes quickly my dad was going to take us to the library. And finally, and probably the most exciting, we were going to get the car washed. Now, I don't know about your family, but in mine going to the car wash is like going Disney World. I might be graduating from high school next year, but I still jumped out of bed, ran down the stairs, pulled on my shoes, and was out the door and in the car before you could even blink.

When we finally pulled into the car wash, my eight year old sister couldn't contain her excitement anymore and she started cheering. My 13 year old sister couldn't stop giggling after she said it looked like our car was being eaten by a giant octopus. I sat up front with my dad who's in his mid-50s and was smiling from ear to ear, tickled at how excited my sisters and I were. See, my family's never had a lot of money so any chance we get to go somewhere, even the grocery store, every kid in the family is fighting over who gets to go.

I lived in this town in Kansas for almost a decade and even though it was only a mile in area and it only had one stoplight, I thought it was the coolest place on earth. And even though the gas station was just down the street, everytime I went there it was like it was the ultimate adventure. Most of the people I know here, where I live in Georgia, their kind of adventure is going out of state or going to the beach or to Six Flags. Mine is still a once a week trip to the local Kroger or to Wal-mart. I barely ever got to go to Wal-mart back in Kansas, it was a 30 minute drive and my parents took us there maybe once a month. Now it's less than a mile from my front door. I could walk there if I wanted to and I still find stepping into that dirty department store to be a highlight of my day. I know as time passes, a lot of aspects of my life are going to change dramatically, but I hope this never does. I hope I'll always be excited about a trip to Wal-mart, a grocery store, or a gas station. I hope that feeling stays the same until the day I die.

Dreaming of Neverland

“Dreams do come true if only we wish hard enough. You can have anything in life if you will sacrifice everything else for it.” J.M. Barrie's classic novel Peter Pan was first published in 1911, after the play had been published in 1904. In 1953, almost 50 years later, Walt Disney debuted his famous animated film adaptation of the boy who never grew up. Then, in 1991, Steven Spielberg released a grown up version, where Pan journeys back to Neverland to rescue his two kids. Almost 100 years after the release of the play, Universal Studios produced the first live-action  film adaptation of the book. My personal favorite of the many versions, the 2003 film stayed the truest to the book, and captured it's picture of youth at it's finest and left almost every viewer wishing they could fly away with Peter and never grow old. But, unfortunately, that kind of thing only happens in fairy tales and us "real" people are left with the cold bitterness of reality, but that doesn't keep us from dreaming.

You know, as you're growing up, there tend to be things that stick with you. Memories, thoughts, dreams, images that you just can't ever seem to let go of. Some people try to tell you that's a bad thing, they try  to coax you away from things that keep you innocent and  young. These days, it feels like adults try to make kids grow up a little too fast. It's like they feel like we all need to be mature and ready to move out of the house by the time we reach middle school. At least, that's what it feels like from a kids point of view. It feels like everything we do is too stupid and childish for adults and we feel ashamed of ourselves, but shouldn't everything we do seem childish? Correct me if I'm wrong, but we are children, aren't we? Shouldn't we look stupid, shouldn't we make mistakes? Isn't that all part of learning and maturing?

While we're young, it feels like adults try to trick us into believing nothing can ever wreck our imaginations. That our imagination can be as big and as vast as we want it to be, but it's all a lie. No matter what anyone says, deep down we know the truth. There are limits, walls, or ends to everything, especially imaginations. From a kids point of view, it feels like all adults are hypocrites because one second they're telling us to dream of anything and everything, then the next second you tell them your dreams and almost instantly they try and tear them down, and try make you be realistic.

A few days ago, in my American literature class, my teacher raised the question: "is it better to be a dreamer or a realist?" Most kids will tell you realist, then they'll see the crazy looks people are giving them and they'll amend their statements to say that there should be a balance between dreams and reality. But, then you ask the adults and it's almost like a mirror, except this time they start by saying dreaming is better before correcting themselves to agree that there should be a balance. It's funny how much children and adults are alike. After all, adults were children themselves once upon a time, and as time goes on children grow to be adults. So, if we're so alike and if we share the same experiences, then why don't we try to change the things that we remember as being terrible? We can't go back and change the past, so why not change the future? Well, here's the answer: we're selfish. The more we think about those "terrible" things, the more we realize that without them, we wouldn't be who we are today.

So, what do you think? It better to be a dreamer or a realist? Is it better to be oblivious with your head in the clouds? Or, is it better to be cold and bitter with the truth of being nailed to the ground? Or, are you one of those neutral, indifferent, indecisive people who can never seem to pick sides and go with what's in the middle and say it's good to have a balance? Well, here's what I say to you: I dare you to pick a side. Deep down, you're leaning more toward one or the other, so pick. But remember: choose wisely.

“The moment you doubt whether you can fly, you cease for ever to be able to do it.” - J.M. Barrie, Peter Pan