Opinion

Looking on the bright side of life

By Tyler Maher

Dec 21, 2021

Plenty of smiles: Eden and Bonnie look at the world around them in a positive light.

The pure joy that children find in the world around them is always something I catch myself marvelling at.

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Last week I spoke about my morning grumbles. Some days, there’s afternoon, evening and 3am grumbles as well.

But I think I can learn a lot from the way Eden, 3, and Bonnie, seven months, approach every moment of their day.

Take Bonnie for example.

Any time I walk in the door, she looks at me and beams that big toothless grin of hers — well these days there’s the hint of a tooth in a few places — and whether I’m arriving home from work or coming into her room to get her up from a nap she’s always happy to see me.

Her commitment to the bit is to be admired, because her smile is all-encompassing for the members of our household and family.

She just loves being happy.

Eden loves being happy too, but it’s more than just grin-deep.

She finds wonder and amazement in even the most mundane events around her.

We introduced her to Elf on a Shelf this December, where her elf named ‘Shellie’ appears in a different spot every morning and listens to all of her Christmas wishes.

When my partner, Grace, was — how shall I put this — the last one to see Shellie in her previous position, the position the next morning was always intricately planned and perfectly executed.

For example, one morning Shellie was relaxing in a Rice Bubble bath when Eden found her.

Eden’s reaction was a huge ‘WOW!’ and ‘OH MY GOODNESS!’ and she could not stop talking about it all day.

One morning after I was the last one to sight Shellie in her old position, the elf was literally just sitting on a shelf in the lounge room.

Looming large: Elf on a Shelf is a daily fixture in our lives at the moment. Photo: AAP/Charles Sykes/Invision/AP Photo by Charles Sykes

Eden’s reaction was — you guessed it — a huge ‘WOW!’ and ‘OH MY GOODNESS!’ and she could not stop talking about it all day.

The same approach is true for most aspects of life with Eden.

When out looking for Christmas lights, every house with the hint of a light — no matter how many or how bright — gets the same enthusiastic reaction and praise from my daughter.

I think there’s a lesson to be found in that.

Maybe we should all approach the day more like a toddler seeing the sun and the sky and the grass and the trees for the first time.