There is something about a baby that brings out the emotions in everyone. Some get downright giddy and gushy about the overall cuteness of a newborn. They are tiny and helpless and seem to be a literal bundle of joy. Most people like seeing and being around babies because it brings them joy. Some do not. They shy away, make sarcastic comments, at least to themselves, and try to move on with their lives.  The difference between these two reactions makes me look at my feelings when faced with the prospect of interacting with a newborn.  I am honestly in the middle of these two reactions, but I am more concerned with understanding what is ahead of any child as they start on the journey of life.  Some are going to be fantastic, and that is exciting, but life is not all about sunshine and rainbows, and there are going to be things that are unpleasant, challenging, and downright painful in the future of even the cutest baby.  So I look at any life to understand the almost necessary hardships and challenges that are ahead.

But There Will Be Sunshine And Rainbows

On the positive side, there will be sunshine and rainbows to experience in any life.  All people will have enjoyable times with you and make you feel happy, excited, powerful, strong, loved, understood, accessible, and many more positives.  These can happen every day, and I wish everyone more of these things than their opposites.  With youth comes a lack of understanding that all items are changing, and nothing will last forever.  I know my appreciation for something of this tenor is far greater now with the understanding that times in your life are never going to come back again.  The person I was and my experiences as a younger person only live in memories.  I have been fortunate to have great victories, creations, joys, kindness, and adventure.

 

Your perspective on things and attitude about them is the most important factor a person will develop, determining how they will enjoy life.  One person can look at something and only see the wrong things, and another looks at the same thing and sees what is right.  Being able to see the good and appreciate it will make life much more enjoyable. But as I look into the face of a newborn baby, I know much of choice in this area will be made by the programming they receive over the early part of life.  What tools will they get from life? How will experience mold them? How many hard lessons will be left for adulthood and experience to drive home in the most potent way?  There are many great things in every life, but a person has to grasp ahold of them and enjoy them.

Dark Clouds and Pitfalls

All people who think at all realize there will be things in life that are not so pleasant. There are times when we will all suffer. There will be losses, disappointments, rejection, failure, unfair treatment, and bad choices, which will color your life differently.  When I see an innocent child, I have a small amount of pity for them because they have no idea what is coming. Like a tidal wave rolling through the ocean, you can’t see it right now, but inevitably it will bring destruction to a shore somewhere.  There are waves in the future.

I have seen my share of these, and they shape your thoughts, reactions, and view of the world.  The fear of this suffering can stop you from growing and cause you to play a small, safe game, and they never push to achieve anything inside their thoughts.  Some will use their difficulties to spring into a more fantastic version of themselves.  Which will this child be?  Every day, every person you encounter in the world is making this decision and living it out.  What have your difficult experiences done to you? I have had experiences that have caused me to suffer.  All were my doing, and their effect on me was self-induced.  After all the pain life can give you, I have found that there is a chance to become a deeper, more understanding, and better person.  I envy people who come to these realizations without the experience of broken things to teach them.  Each dark cloud that passed my way and every pitfall I was trapped by has taught me something. I am hoping I have learned the proper lessons.

Clean Slates and Hopes

A friend told me that looking at a child and looking in their eyes is like seeing a clean slate with the hope that all the good things in life are in front of them.  Children are always learning, and we should all maintain that aspect of childhood because we never stop being taught by experience. The blank slate of a child doesn’t last long as they are taught the morals, expectations, and fears of their parents, relatives, institutions, and society in general.  All of these factors weave their way into a person’s mind and influence how they think and what role they should play to fit into society and the world in general.  They may be buried under a pile of expectations and painful experiences of disappointment in life.  Has everything been handed to them in life? Or have they had to work for what they want?

Each slate will quickly be covered with life’s experiences, lessons, and thoughts and how they can be applied to other people in life. Each child will start to make their own decisions and develop an attitude. Some will make the world better through their light and laugh, and others will bring darkness to the world, which is the hard truth. Most people will do both at different points in their lives. Based on the experiences they are having at the time.  Without an opportunity to process and evaluate experiences positively, it is hard for someone to learn valuable lessons and not let the suffering harm them permanently. Each story of life is unique, and there are no guarantees for any child about what the future holds. And that knowledge is in my mind when I look into the eyes of a child, and it is my fear for them that rises to the surface.

But that Is Life

Regardless of my fears and feelings about life, it is still the game we are in, and we have no choice but to play it.  It is a game that can’t be “won.” It can only be processed and played out to its conclusion. So many of our experiences are directly in our control, and we have nobody to blame but ourselves for the outcome. It comes down to a simple choice, and all people have to make it for themselves.  Be responsible and proactive about your options or be reactive and blame everyone and everything else for where you are.  Wherever you choose to focus will determine the level of joy you experience and how you play your game.

Life is a package deal that will bring you a pretty equal measure of sunny days and those filled with rain. It is the way you approach each which makes you who you are.  It will challenge you, push you, and grow because when we are young children, it has a potential for greatness within us, and if we aren’t moving ourselves toward it, life will nudge us in that direction.  Those nudges can hurt.  So when you observe any person today, as you walk down the street or drive past them in a car, or sit near them at a local coffee shop, recognize the young child in them, with a blank slate that has been written on with the chalk of their life experiences.  Understand they are processing their challenges and pain.  I believe we are all doing the best we can.  In the end, I have hope for every person; it will all turn out OK in the future.  What is your story going to be?

So should you find yourself face to face with a newborn on this day, think to yourself of the challenges that will inevitably face this young innocent. Then remember that your journey has been the same and that you are doing the best you can in your journey.  Wish the child and yourself the best on the trip through life, and remember it is a relatively short game.