Just Living: Thinking About Laozi's 'Wu Wei' While Spending Time with My Grandchildren

My daughter's family is visiting right now.
I have two grandchildren.

They are five and three years old.

Both of them move around a lot, but the three-year-old in particular never stops.
I am impressed by how they can keep moving like that.

What is their energy source?

They come near me while I'm sitting on the sofa not moving, shout something, and then run off,
grab various things and throw them,
come back and climb onto my lap,
and once they get down, they jump on the sofa.

It's amazing they don't get tired.
Where does that energy come from?

The five-year-old doesn't move when he's focused on the TV.
He also used to move just like his younger brother when he was three.
What is going on inside the mind of a three-year-old?

A three-year-old is a teacher

Previously,

I wrote an article titled

I am four years old,
but I believe that our origins lie in the period between three and four years old.

However, seeing a real three-year-old,

I thought, 'It's a stretch to say I am four years old'

(laughs).

Did I move this much when I was little?
I remember well asking my mother to carry me in her arms or on her back.

My three-year-old grandchild seems to be completely absorbed in what is right in front of them.
Of course, they don't seem to have any worries.
They are just laughing.

Hmm, I want to be like that.

The five-year-old sometimes has a thoughtful look

In contrast, my five-year-old grandchild sometimes shows the face of an older brother.
Of course, that is proof of his growth.

At the same time,

It feels like they are about to join our group.

That is the feeling I get.

Thinking

Much of what we call 'thinking' could be described as a function for achieving desires or solving problems.
It is precisely because we have the thought of 'how I want to be' that we suffer from the 'gap with reality'.
This is extremely important, but I also feel it is directly linked to the states of happiness and unhappiness.

In contrast, my three-year-old grandchild seems to live in the moment rather than thinking about whether they are happy or unhappy.
They are simply living in each and every moment.

Living in my 60s, just living

I sometimes think that this might be the secret to life.

Not being swayed by unnecessary desires or anxieties, and living each moment naturally.
Not straining to become happy, not fearing unhappiness excessively, and living each moment naturally.

Laozi's 'Wu Wei' might be exactly that kind of state of mind.

As I spend time with my grandchildren, I feel that they are teaching me something very important.