Join me on my journey of making new discoveries in life, as I share how observing children has helped me grow personally.
My Observation Of Little Children
I work at a preschool and I love working with children because I enjoy seeing them learn new things. I really enjoy to see that “aha” moment in their eyes when they figure something out for the first time. Their eyes light up; they get so excited and proud of themselves. Sometimes I think that my main reason for working in a school is to witness those moments in children’s lives and to be part of the process.
How To Be Like Little Children
I live for those moments in my own life as well. I probably don’t experience them as often as children do—after all, I’ve already figured out many things about life and the natural world. But I’m a believer in God, and that means I’m His child. Jesus teaches us to be like children (Matthew 18:3), and I believe this is one area of life where we can learn and trust just as little children do. God is teaching me about Himself. He is the One we can never fully comprehend or understand, so I look forward to learning more about Him. When it happens—when I understand something new, when I know what to do in my life or in a specific situation, when I discern what God wants me to know—I experience that same kind of exciting, enlightening moment. I believe it’s very similar to what children experience daily as they learn.
Brain Development In Children And Adults
When I studied Child Development in college, I learned that those “aha” moments happen when new connections between brain neurons are formed. This is what we know as brain development and activity.
In my own experience, those moments often come when I’ve been scared to do something, procrastinated, or postponed action—and then suddenly, the “light bulb” comes on. I learn something from God and His Word that reassures me: I am safe with Him, and I can actually do the things that normally would scare me. That’s what trusting God means to me.
Trusting God In Letting Go
One of the areas where I’ve had to trust God was with decluttering. I was holding on to things I hadn’t used in years, but I was still afraid to let them go. What if I needed them someday? I had learned how to collect and even hoard; I saw it as a virtue. Getting rid of perfectly good stuff felt wasteful and unwise.
But the time came to purge and get rid of the excess. Now I see decluttering as a wiser choice than collecting. I realized how much time I spent managing, cleaning, organizing, and simply remembering what I owned. My belongings were constantly at the back of my mind, reminding me of what I needed to do to take care of them.
When I began my decluttering journey two years ago, I started small—in the kitchen. I removed a few extra spatulas that were cluttering the drawer. The result? I felt so much freedom and joy. I could actually see what I had. Couple of months later, I returned and pared it down even more, because there were still items I wasn’t sure about the first time.
My Most Valuable Possessions Are Time, Energy And Freedom
Now, I believe that decluttering is an ongoing process—you’re never truly done. It’s like cleaning: you keep coming back to it because we live in a strange time where stuff keeps creeping into our lives, promising to solve problems but often doing the opposite. It demands our attention, time, and energy—some of the most valuable things in life.
That was a light bulb moment for me: by letting go of things, I actually gained more time and energy to focus on what truly matters. What started as a goal to simply declutter my house has led to many great things.
I no longer see myself as someone burdened or too busy for fun. I enjoy my life so much more now. I’ve become happier, healthier, more relaxed, and even more spontaneous and adventurous. I love my life even more now that I’ve freed myself for all the amazing and fun things it has to offer.