A Thousand Forests

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“You give them too much freedom. You need to get those children ready for the real world.”

These children have a LIFETIME of the “real world” headed their way. They will lose a little bit of themselves trying to please people and seek validation from teachers, bosses, peers, family, and society. They will spend WAY too much time worrying what other people think and trying to constantly obtain a standard that’s ALWAYS just out of reach.

The “Real World” is going to tell them how to look, how much to weigh, what to wear, what kind of car to drive, how big of a house they should buy, how much money to make, and what “success” supposedly looks like.

As I stand here, watching a group of young children in their underwear, bodies covered in paint, running and screaming through the yard wielding toilet plungers and mud covered sticks my eyes fill with tears.

My hope is that one day, when the stress and burdens of the “Real World” seem all too much to handle, they will think back to their childhoods and remember exactly what it feels like….

…to be free.