Squirts Guns are the Key to Life's Mysteries!

I have to confess that most Baby Boomers, which is who I am, have a tough time learning how to stop working and enjoy life. It is too easy to be on vacation and have your iDevice next to you waiting for the latest text or update. I have been good about planning vacations and taking time to be with my better half. The challenge is to actually disengage from the rat race purposely.

Last night we had a squirt gun fight with mostly little  kids or munchkins with a few of my teens and interns running around like maniacs. It was so much fun watching everyone let go and get wet. Yes, I had fun dumping bottles of cold water on a few of the kids. I also got doused by most of my little guys who delighted in giving me ‘wet pants’. It was a very hot evening that turned out to actually be cooler than expected.

I know that letting your ‘hair’ down and enjoying life is so important but too easy to miss by assuming that being busy you have a full life. I know that after our summer program finishes in a week that I will be on overload for a few days so unwinding will take some time. It is so easy to feel guilty for not being productive. The reality is that I need to recharge my battery often. I know that at times I believe that if I’m not involved with something it won’t get done.

I’m starting to understand why Jesus was so quick to use the little kids around him as a constant life lesson about how adults should live. It is too easy to have misplaced priorities. Too often we view kids and even teens as being in the way to experiencing life. I know that too often kids are viewed as an inconvenience and pushed to the side. It is too easy for adults to assume that they can’t learn anything from a kid.

This last week I was listening to one of my nine year old little girls that I learned a lot about looking at life in more simplistic way. It is too easy to make everything into a complicated mess that needs some type of special analytical skills. She asked a very pointed question and then listened to my response. I know that learning to listen for most adults is really difficult because we are too interested in getting our response out then hearing.

What has to happen for me to let go and dive into life? I know that once the squirt guns were unwrapped and filled that life changed. What does it take to stop being productive, start having fun and be able to recharge through doing something totally off the wall? I so much enjoyed watching the kids chase our interns and teens around with their squirt guns. It wasn’t too long before I had to jump in and get a few of the munchkins with cold water. You don’t have to be an expert marksman to enjoy a squirt gun fight.

I’m glad that dollar stores have these secret weapons for only a dollar. They can become a door into a time of relaxation and being able to enjoy life. Yes my iDevice can be put on hold for an afternoon.