5 Life-Changing Lessons That a 4-Year-Old Taught Me

Sometimes little kids teach us big lessons.

This pandemic has brought out a new side of me. I used to be the person who loved her alone-time but now, I really don’t like being alone. With that being said, the baby fever in me has grown to mind-blowing levels, and I know it won’t be going away anytime soon.

My sister moved in for the holidays and during that time, I learned how her babies are more like me than her. No wonder, they are witty and smart — they get it from their aunt. She has a 4-year-old daughter and a 7-year-old son. Let’s just say that I was more into the girls’ gang and her cute little ponytails — most of my time revolved around the baby girl, Maria.

Being around this little princess day in and day out, made me look at things differently. I never thought that a 4-year-old would ever become the source of some biggest lessons in my life, but here we are. Without further ado, let’s talk about those naive, yet life-changing lessons.

1. Running to your mom saves you from everything

“A mother’s arms are more comforting than anyone else’s.” — Princess Diana

Even during the time when Alice fell into the rabbit hole, I always found Maria running to her mother so she could make her feel better. It was very comforting to see that she knew the value of her mother that we, as adults, have forgotten.

Through the passing years, I have only seen people (including me), getting distant from their parents. We no longer share, talk, or even spend time like we used to. Why has it changed? Did we forget that our mother used to be the only superhero we believed in while growing up? How can you not stay in touch with a person who carried you for 9 months? How can we be so casually cruel?

I remember how my mother used to solve my problems. In those times when she couldn’t solve them, she would take my worries away with her love and warmth.

Go pick up your phone and dial that number that is buried in your contact list. Talk to your mother, tell her you love her — before it’s too late.

2. Your scars are your trophies

I remember last summer when Maria broke her foot and had to wear a cast for almost two months. She still recalls how cute it was when everyone came around and left one-liners on her casts.

I even remember the time when it used to be me. Every single bandaid in the class was looked at with wide eyes, and we proudly showed our friends how we fell trying something “cool.” Now, times have changed. We have learned to hide things — we think that our scars are our weaknesses but, are they really?

As we get older, we hide these scars and let them become our painful little secrets. We don’t want to be seen as weak, so we don’t tell people where it hurts and why it hurts. But children know that scars are not a sign of weakness, but a sign of strength and survival. It’s a story worth telling. It is time that we learn from this, be open about our scars and everything they have taught us.

3. Crying won’t get you everything:

As emotional and as sensitive I am, there are many flaws that I constantly work to change — one of them is crying my way through things. Being with Maria taught me that crying to get things, won’t let them be a part of our life.

We were playing in the backyard when my sister walked in and asked Maria to go to bed, as it was her nap time. I wanted to spoil my niece a little with my love, so I asked her to throw a fit and get a few more minutes to hang around. Maria innocently shrugged her shoulders and said, “It won’t work, it’s time to take a nap”. I know she said it because she knew the kind of person her mother is (I am scared of her too), but it indirectly made me look at something totally out of context.

With my emotions always wanting to cross the line, it made me feel that there are many things that we need to accept — even when we don’t like them. Sometimes life throws us into situations that aren’t in our favor — the best we can do, is accept them and see how they turn out better for us.

Crying our way through life, thinking that we can forcefully make something ours, is not what we should aim towards. Whatever’s meant to be ours, will make its way to us — crying and forcing things never makes us happy in the long run.

4.Imaginations shouldn’t have boundaries:

Just when I thought I was done learning, her tea parties came to my mind. The fact that her plastic cups have tea and her dolls are filled with souls who sit in those chairs — giving her compliments about the way Maria looks and the way she made a perfect cup of tea, is incredible.

Our imagination is limitless. Those plastic cups that her mother will throw away in a few years are actually a source of happiness for her.

Use your power of imagination to erase the rainy day you are having. Your mind has the ability to put the sun out just for you to witness. There are fences blocking people from all over the world but there is no fence in your imagination.

If the hole in from of you is too deep and dark, bring in the light from your mind. It is time for us to believe in the infinite possibilities of our imaginations, and all the ways we can be saved through them.

5. You can fix stuff with a nap or a snuggle

Even though she was too young to teach me anything, I will always be thankful to her for teaching me this one.

We live in a world where everything works as quickly as our fingers run on our keyboards. It is overwhelming to see how things change color and form here — sometimes, it is best to sleep on things before we make decisions. Sleep changes the way we see things. It allows us to get out of the piling emotions, relax our minds, and see things from a new perspective when we wake up.

If you’re sad, stressed, or tired — take a nap. Once you wake up with a pair of new feelings, strengths, and emotions, you are now ready to make the decision.

Now, who doesn’t love snuggling? I bet Undertaker had those soft moments in his life, too. Human touch is the purest form of affection, especially, when it comes from people you love and trust. This simple thing can make you feel much better, reduce stress and anxiety, and help you focus on what you need to do. Take a deep breath and go snuggle — It works like magic.

Final thoughts:

The world is full of lessons. The people who we look as kids, sometimes teach us the biggest things in life. We don’t always need wisdom to make better choices that may lead to positive outcomes— sometimes a keen eye is all that is required. Go look for things while spending time with tiny human beings. You never know what they have hidden behind those innocent eyes, wet smiles, and vast imaginations.