Top 3 Things About Life I Learned From My 5-Month Old Goddaughter

A couple of weeks ago, I drove up to Charlotte, NC, to visit my best friend. We haven't seen each other since late 2018 because of me being a new graduate looking for a full-time job and then the pandemic. Since that time, a lot has changed! She went through pregnancy, had a healthy baby, and the said baby is now 5 months. This was my first time meeting my goddaughter, and I couldn't have been any more excited. After hanging with my goddaughter, best friend, and her husband for a long weekend, I took the time to reflect on what I learned from my 5-month-old goddaughter.

Never Stop Being Curious

My goddaughter is very observant. After naps, she scopes the place out, looking for any changes and possibly making sure her parents didn't do anything fun while she was asleep. She always finds new sounds or items that expand her worldview. But, of course, her worldview is very limited, so her curiosity allows her to learn herself and what she can do and the world around her.

As we get older, we lose that curiosity. We believe that we have enough information to navigate this world through our education. I was reminded that curiosity helps us expand our worldview. It's so much we don't learn in school, and so much we need to continue to learn to understand ourselves and the world around us. Being around my goddaughter reinforced to me the importance of staying curious. When we stop learning, we stop living.

Take Time to Enjoy the Wonders of Life

The first lesson leads right into the second lesson. I noticed while visiting that when my goddaughter heard someone come down the steps, she turned and saw who it was. My best friend let me know that she recently started doing this, which is part of a baby's growth. It made me realize how much we take for granted. Seeing the innocence and the joy she displayed in discovering something new was great. Watching her grow from a newborn who couldn't control her head to a 5-month-old baby who is looking around and finding joy in her discovery is extraordinary.

Just like we tend to lose curiosity as we get older, we also lose that joy of enjoying the little things in life. We aren't promised a single day. We aren't promised perfection in this life. Experiencing my goddaughter hit different milestones in development has left me in awe of how intricate the human body is in design and how complex our world is. Enjoying the wonder of life allows us to cherish the days we do have together.

Growth is Both Fast and Patient

You may be thinking that makes no sense! But it's true! My goddaughter is ready to be on the move. She is maybe a month or two away from crawling, but she is ready to be on the go now. Multiple times while I was there, she shared her displeasure at not moving how she wanted to. Her growth and development have been fast, but now she has to be patient. She doesn't understand how far she has come from being a newborn; all my goddaughter knows is she is ready to be on the move, and she can't quite figure out how to move as she wants.

This made me think about how fast time moves as you get older. As a 17-year-old high school graduate, 30 years old felt like a lifetime away. Even at 21, 30 felt like some time away. But those years moved fast. As a young woman, I felt like graduating college meant starting adulthood. And while that is kind of true, even now, at 31, there are days I still feel like I'm figuring out this adulting life. The 17-year-old me couldn't wait until I lived the life I am now, but the time it took to get here was fast and took a lot of patience.

Conclusion

When I went to Charlotte, I expected to meet my goddaughter, build a small connection with her, and catch up with my friends. I don't think I really expected to come back home with lessons from her. But I did, and it reminded me we can learn from anyone. So while I'm excited to buy her a basketball goal in a couple of years and introduce her to it, I'm also excited to see what else I learn from her as she grows older and will continue to remind her that Auntie Keira loves her.

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