Childhood, ignorance is bliss

I think life can usually be put into set time periods; childhood, teen years (can be separated into early and late teens), university, graduate life and adult life (again can be broken down into various stages such as starting out, married life, parenthood etc...). As I'm young I won't be writing about adult life yet. In each period I believe I went through big, life-defining changes. There were turning points in my life where I went through self-development and they were key to make me into the person I am today. The only exception was my childhood, which this post will cover. I feel that my childhood was a constant and gradual development rather than a distinctive change for me. It was only afterwards that I encountered significant changes.

I think it is fair to say that childhood is the foundation of people's lives. I wouldn't change much about my upbringing as I have no regrets about the person I've become today. There's the only usual regrets of saying and doing things ignorantly or mischievously when I was younger. Usually stupid things. But they're things that are expected from children and everybody does it; young or old. They also become memories we laugh and talk about later with friends and family.

My parents did well in raising me and my three siblings. Some have called me a 'deprived child' but that's a materialistic and dramatic way of looking at it. This opinion depends on how you was raised and says a lot about modern day society. For me, there was nothing wrong with how I was raised. I grew up like a normal child and never went without any necessities. I was spoilt in different ways to others; probably on a smaller scale than some. And I liked my simple life of learning and playing at school, and then doing homework, pursuing hobbies, being lazy and spending time with family at home. Sometimes I still long for those days again.

I was brought up to value my family and education, to treat others like I would like to be treated and appreciate what I had. Unfortunately for my parents I was born with a built in stubborn, simple mind and blunt manner. I wasn't a bad child and I never caused enormous trouble for my parents, but I know I wasn't, like a lot of children, easy to raise. I don't think parenthood is easy and I feel sympathetic towards my parents for having to raise me along with three other children. I'm massively grateful to them for their love, guidance and help throughout my life. I also know it's their responsibility and job as parents to love and raise me no matter what and try to be good parents, but we all know that not everybody does this. So I'm eternally thankful that my mum and dad took parenthood seriously and did the best they could to raise me well.

I had a normal childhood; go to school, play with friends and siblings, do homework and do it all over again the next day. Luckily, I didn't have chores and I could choose my after school activities, and I got some pocket money when I was good or as special treats. I was very naive and ignorant. Looking back though, I'm not sure how much of it was me mentally blocking out reality so I could maintain my little fantasy bubble that I lived in. I have always been intuitive and can take in a lot of information around me, but I have a simple mind so I used to never realise it. I watched the news and read a lot but I never thought about it and let the information click in my head. I understood all of the bad things that happened but never let myself think about it and what it meant. Maybe because I didn't want to acknowledge it, I'm not sure.

Again, like the majority of people, I experienced noticeable changes in high school; physically, mentally and environmentally. This is what I'll cover in my next post. I hope this post gives you a little insight of my life and my personality. Also to help you reflect on your childhood and what makes a good family and happy childhood. These are things that are highlighted every now and then, but like how I was as a child, I don't think many people truly sit down to think about it and acknowledge their importance. I don't think all parents are bad but because it's not an easy job I think we should take it upon ourselves to try to adjust and change in accordance to what's best for the child. And this applies to everybody, not just parents. I think we're all guilty of seeing or hearing something and letting it pass by either because we don't want to acknowledge it or dismiss it as a little thing. But little things can mean a lot to anyone. I was a lucky child and I try my hardest to do what I can for my students. Especially as we know that life does get harder and I want them to appreciate what they have now and be prepared for the future.