Children can teach adults a great deal about celebrating life, how to live in the moment, how to discover, and how to delight in simple things.

“The child is a natural investigator,” observed writer Margaret McIntyre. “Testing... fumbling and endless repeating.”

Children show us how to meet the world with wonder and spontaneity. “Wisdom begins in wonder,” said ancient philosopher Socrates.

Ever watch how children act on an inner impulse? If they feel like doing something, they do it. If they want to run around in circles or dance or sing, they do. No inhibitions, no judgments, just the sheer exuberance of living in the moment.

“The essence of pleasure is spontaneity,” observed Australian writer Germaine Greer.

Give yourself permission to be spontaneous. “Be open to experience,” urged self-actualization guru Abraham Maslow. Be open to the unexpected. Imagine something and make it happen. Take delight in the patterns, colors, and simplicity of life.

“Wherever life takes us, there are always moments of wonder,” said former President Jimmy Carter.

Rachel Carson understood that one of the saddest parts of growing older is not age itself, but the gradual dimming of astonishment. To keep that clear-eyed vision alive is to remain open, awake, and tender to the beauty still waiting all around us.