Cherries and Childhood

Dear Diary,

Yesterday was sunny, outside the walls of my personal dimension and inside as well. As I walked into the university, I was preoccupied with a blend of relief, anxiety and satisfaction from having reached the place in which I would invest my energy for the coming years. Yes, it was warm and sunny outside, and it reflected on the clarity of my plans now.

At noon during a fast lunch break, I looked outside the window, over an expansive inner courtyard garden – the shared space of an entire apartment block – and watched two little girls playing in the sun. The game was really uncomplicated and the material used no more than two brooms and a cherry tree. Around and around they raced, angelic little figures pretending to be witches, shouting, laughing and jumping with the brooms between their tiny legs.

It wasn’t long however, before the younger one decided to spice the routine up a little bit, and climbed up into the tree – broom in hand naturally. She positioned herself carefully, and with a resonating "woohoo" she leaped down from the branch to the ground only a short flight below. Even from my high window, I couldn’t miss her radiant smile.

I ended up spending half an hour gazing at the captivating scene before I poked myself to get back to work. But it gave me pause: I couldn’t remember the last time it had all seemed so simple, that I had taken a moment simply to "play." I had been so consumed with getting my priorities sorted out and putting myself on the right track… There were so many tasks on my list; some of them are still pending. But this sight touched me: "You should dare to be fully content by innocent pleasures," a voice whispered in my ear. Joy matters.

Today, the same girls were back in the garden, entertaining themselves by gathering the cherries form the same tree and feasting on them. How was it I hadn’t noticed the cherries before?