One of my favorite games to play as a child was Candy Land.
I always had to be the plastic, cartoonish blue gingerbread man. Each card I pulled sent me on an adventure and I marveled over getting to travel to the Lollipop Woods or through the Candy Cane Forest. It was a whimsical fantasy that led my imagination into worlds dipped in sugar where I wanted a permanent home.
The magic we experience during childhood never lasts. We grow older, we tack on responsibilities, pay bills and fuel our mornings with a $6 coffee and the ghost of a smile.
Time is spent mowing our lawns, browsing endless IKEA shelves for cheap homewares instead of spinning sugary stories with friends in the Licorice Lagoon.
Is the magic gone? My inner child doesn’t seem to think so.
When I take time to sit in the stillness before the sun rises, I can feel the pull of my inner child and I am reminded that despite the malaise adult me feels, my inner child is creative, hopeful and finding magic in the mundane.
I have lost touch with my creative spirit and feel out of alignment with most of my life in its current state. This past week and it’s life-altering events have shown me that one choice can throw you knee deep into a Molasses Swamp with no signs of escape.
I am sticky and stuck and the only way out is another roll of the dice. A risk. Do I stay stuck or does the next card provide me with freedom and a new beginning through the Gumdrop Mountain Pass?
Whatever cards I pull next, I know I can make it through. I can become unstuck, clean myself off and forge a new beginning with my inner child leading the way.
Am I the master of my own sweet adventures? Yes, I am. I only need to listen and look around instead of down at my phone to find that magic is immediate and everywhere. If you need me, I will be taking a dip in the Ice Cream Sea and wandering off to this next adventure that awaits me. It’ll be a great one.
200 Milligrams at a Time 