Watatita: Age Is Nothing But a Number

Alexia Cahyaningtyas

I remember when I was a young girl, I used to look up to the adults — wishing I was their age. I thought adults were people who knew all the answers to life and knew how to fix problems. Yet as I grew older into adulthood, I discovered that the things that I mentioned above were not necessarily true.

I had this image in mind that “grown-ups” were responsible and mature, but just last week I saw a woman get out of her fancy car in a drop-off spot of a classy mall and throw some dirty tissues on the ground. Minutes after she walked into the mall, one of the mall attendants picked up her rubbish. I thought that only children would have people cleaning up after them, especially in public places.

When I was younger, I also experienced some bullying at school — and I thought that bullying would end there. I didn’t know whether to laugh or cry when witnessed and experienced even more bullying during university years and also in the workplace. I can recall so many attention-seeking, spoiled, name-calling and backstabbing behaviors.

I thought adults were the type of people who are tough, who are able to accept things that they don’t agree with or something they are not really happy about. However, I also see so many adults who complain and whine all the time, yet they don’t provide a solution or a way out. They don’t seem to contribute anything positive. Sometimes when complaining doesn’t feel enough, they’d rather do a personal attack on someone.

This, to me, is very similar to a four-year-old who is angry with another child. And just to make the other child feel bad, they yell, “You’re a poo-poo head!” Seriously, it’s no different to the sound of adults making a personal attack without giving a positive way out.

I’m not talking about all adults —  I always have to mention this in each blog entry, because if I don’t, everyone blames me for being “too general” and people start attacking me personally. But it’s great to see many adults who have learnt a lot of lessons and actually acted like grown-ups. They don’t get involved in other people’s businesses: they contribute to society and are responsible and mature.

This blog entry is also a self-reminder to myself. I notice, myself including, that when we act irresponsibly like children, sometimes we’re not even aware of it. There are times when we do feel the need to experience the childish fun we used to feel a long time ago.

Maybe you can do yourself a favor: if you see an empty swing, go on and sit on it, watch old cartoons, play the games you used to play, because all of these things won’t disadvantage other people.

Sometimes when I see an annoying child scream their lungs out in the middle of a public place, I think to myself, “Gee, I’d love to do the same.” But I remember that I’m an adult, and it’s inappropriate to do that. It’s the same with littering, bullying, or being spoiled. We were all once children, and we still have that inner child. However, we have to learn how to control that child in us.