Childish Things

I remember when I was young, listening to the radio with my mother. It seemed as if every song that came on was her "favourite song", or at least every other song was. I thought she was crazy. How could so many songs be her "favourite"; it didn't make any sense.

Now I understand. The more I read, the more quotes I find that I love. I have many, many favourites. My favourite can change at any moment depending on my mood. They may not all be my very favourite at this moment but have been a favourite at different times of my life. I love them and carry them with me.

Today, I thought I would write down my new favourite quote...for this moment anyway.

"When I was ten, I read fairy tales in secret and would have been ashamed if I had been found doing so. Now that I am fifty I read them openly. When I became a man I put away childish things, including the fear of childishness and the desire to be very grown up."
~ C.S. Lewis

 I was an early reader and read the Little House on the Prairie series, Charlotte's Web and others when I was six and seven. When I was ten I read Sweet Valley High books. At 11 and 12 and 13 I collected Stephen King and V.C. Andrews novels and I would stay up reading until the early morning hours because I was too frightened to go to sleep.

As an adult some of my favourite books are the Anne of Green Gables series (which I read for the first time when I was pregnant with my daughter), Little Women, The Secret Garden, the Little Princess, Harry Potter and many others. I read to my kids everyday and have loved exploring some of the literature I missed out on (or that wasn't available) when I was younger.

Photo Courtesy of William Rance

As I watch my 11 year old try desperately to seem more grown up: refusing to be in the room if a cartoon is on (because they are SO stupid), and not wanting to read "baby books" (anything with pictures) to her brothers because they are SO beneath her. I am reminded of my 11 year old self and how hard those pre-teen and teen years could be and how desperately I wanted to be an adult. I am grateful for age and the wisdom I have gained to know that it is okay to stand out and be different and it is also okay to just be a kid sometimes no matter what your age is.