The other day, I was at a friend’s home to tape a radio broadcast when I had the opportunity to watch her small kitten in action. The black with white trimmed feline was a joy to behold. It had a small ball made up of tin foil that it would carry around and literally throw while running with a snap of its head. Then, she would catch it before it stopped rolling. At one point it jumped onto my friend’s lap (who was undaunted by this) and proceeded to reach something on the wall that caught her interest. I wondered about the sense of freedom that this animal displayed and how eager all of us are to enjoy that same sense. The freedom to be who we are instead of the compliant, “keep up with the Jones’ ”, “how am I doing?” kind of person we may have become. Comparative thinking is the enemy of creativity and, in reality, if two people think alike, there’s not much thinking going on. The sense of “who we are” is lost in the need to be successful sometimes. By “who we are” I’m referring to the free spirit we used to be when we were very young and didn’t care about conformity. The other day at a party there was a beautiful child…I would guess about 2 years of age…walking among the adult guests while swinging her arms in a display of obvious confidence with her father following behind her. She might have stopped for something to eat, touched something that interested her, decide to start running in another direction…all within moments of each other. I was mesmerized and wondered whether this was a clear demonstration of confidence and freedom of thought and feeling that I can only feebly try to help my clients attinquisitivain. As a psychotherapist working with corporate moguls I would often direct them to a playground to watch children at play in order to help them capture the sense of creativity and fairness that children demonstrate. Some of those who were rather staid in their thinking just didn’t get it. The home page of my website shows a picture of my grandson, Jacob, looking out over the Gulf of Mexico. The caption reads “if we could become inquisitive like a child and ask lots of questions, answers will come. Adults need to re-learn that simple and natural process they forgot while growing up”. Some believe they never had it. They did but they’re afraid of how they’ll look if they go back there. They would need to ask “how am I doing?” instead of just enjoying the freedom that going there would bring. Only a child could convince them that the adventure is well worth the risk. And only someone who can trust their instincts would listen.
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