 - Knock knock,
- Who's there?
- Little person.
- Little person who?
- The little person in you.
Little people are amazing! Obviously I'm not talking about vertically challenged people, not that I have a problem with them, but I'm referring to children. You probably think I've lost it, don't you? Who would think that a little screaming, hyperactive brat would be amazing, especially during your college years? Well, I do, and if you ever had a proper conversation with a little person, I'm sure that you would agree.
You might have forgotten, but once upon a time you were also little. Remember when you thought the most coolest thing was to spin round and round till you got dizzy? Remember those times when you would be the happiest girl on the planet when your mother polished your tiny fingernails? Do you remember the day you got that shiny red bike? Everything was so easy but also so terribly hard. You never knew it was going to get harder, you didn't even think about the future. Back then the future was not a goal for you, the future was there waiting for you just the way you wanted it to be. It was what you made out of it, it was your imagination.
Today you know that things don't work that way and you are faced with the “real monster” that people most commonly call Life. You forget those feelings you had. You forgot how it feels to be genuinely happy without thinking about what could happen next. You had wonderful ideas, you weren't scared to share them. You could be friends with just about anyone and anything. A simple rock could entertain you for hours. Even climbing a tree would make you feel like you've conquered the world.
You start to remember how it felt to be a little person when you are around them.
You once again witness unconditional love. It's great, too great to be described by words. The things they say are so genius, you wonder why you never thought about it before. Their questions, make you question the 20 years of education you received.
You remember how powerful your imagination used to be and how you distorted it by mass worries. You hate yourself for having let it go, but you hope to keep the remaining part by letting your inner child free. People start to judge you once you do that. They think you are immature and silly. They think that you don't take anything seriously and that you wouldn't understand. Because for them, losing your imagination, your creativity is what makes you a grown up.
Those people are the ones who have locked their little person deep inside, somewhere no one can find it, not even them. They feel ashamed of its existence, and they force it to stay in the dark all alone, till they forget it even exists. What people don't want to understand is that, that little person they are so afraid of will come out eventually, whether they like it or not and once it's out it will be really hard to put him back in.
It's just wonderful to see what little people can make you do. You don't know why you are doing it, but you just can't help the temptation. Maybe you start seeing it as an escape after some point. After all, the monster under your bed cannot be as bad as terrorism, global economic crises, or nuclear bombs, can it? The magic is knowing when to not let those little people rule our lives and at the same time make sure to have them in our lives. They will help you see, or rather, help you remember what really matters in life.
By Eda Erdem (TRIN/IV)
a_erdem@ug.bilkent.edu.tr
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