We adults are a funny lot, ya know? As kids all we want is to grow up to be able to do whatever the heck it is that we want to do, dreaming of that distant day when we can be our own bosses yet, as soon as we are grown up, we act more childish then ever. As soon as we are adult we suddenly feel like we have some weird standards to live up to, some rules of adulthood we have to adhere to. And it’s no wonder we feel that way because we are told by our parents and teachers and our friends and the media that darn it, we need to act our ages. As if age signifies maturity. We have to get a job, settle down, pair up, get married, have kids, get old, and die. Wow, yeah, there’s a lot of fun in there, right? No. Which is not to say that marriage and kids and jobs and all that are not fun but that when you are told you have to do something, that you are expected to do something then it loses its luster. And when you feel like you have to let go of the things you love, the things you are passionate about then you feel you are losing a part of yourself you will never get back.
And for what?
What is so important about being an adult that we let go of the things that give us joy? Sure, we have to take things more seriously, have to understand that our actions have consequences, and we have to live not just for the moment but for the future as well. We have to learn to be less self involved and more a part of the world around us. We have to see the bigger picture. As such though, who on earth ever said we had to let go of the things that make us happy? Why on earth do we call so much that we love ‘childish things’? Is it jealousy of those people that have things they are passionate about when we don’t feel the same passions? I wonder.
One of those things people feel that they have to leave behind are fairy tales, those stories from our youth that show so much of the world and the things lurking in the dark. For some reason fairy tales are always associated with children despite how dark many of them are, and despite that fairy tales are some of the oldest cultural stories we have as a race. Fairy tales are important to us because they don’t just tell us morals, but tie us together as peoples. It is through our fairy tales that we learn about each other and that our fears, our hopes, our dreams, our loves are the things that unite us deeply and permanently. Fairy tales are for adults and kids can get something out of them, that’s the way it is. We have watered them down for kids, dumbed them down if you will, but in the end the good ones are for everyone. The great ones are forever.
As adults we need to start taking a stand for the things we love and hold dear. There is too little passion and love in the world and if we are ever to raise good, wise children and are ever to start healing some of the many ills of the world then we need to start embracing who we are, what we are, and what we love. And we need to stop acting as if things like fairy tales are for children. I know mine isn’t. The Meep Sheep is for everyone. It doesn’t have ‘adult’ language or violence but is meant to be enjoyed by any and all ages. I did my part. You do yours and go read a good fairy tale and remind yourself of a time when there were still monsters that roamed the darkness.
c
The Spooky World of Chris Ringler 