Simplicity and Simplifying

My son recently had a birthday. It was an excellent day. I took the day off of work and we concentrated on making memories. We told him he could eat anywhere for lunch - He chose old McDonalds. My wife volunteered to cook anything he wanted for dinner - He chose little corndogs. For a birthday present, my wife and I got him this awesome Iron Man remote controlled car. It ended up being defective so we took it back. We guided our son back to the store and the row of RC cars and trucks and said he could pick anything on the row he wanted. He looked for a while, browsed up and down the row, and then stopped at the end of the row and said, "I want this!" He held up a 10 dollar action figure set. He was elated with the gift.

It reminded me of the time we were at Sea World before our son was born. At the end of the day we told our daughter she should get a stuffed animal. As she stood before a large wall of stuffed animals, some as big as me, I began formulating the arguments I would use if she pointed to one of the larger animals. Instead, she chose a small orca about the size of my hand. It was nearly the smallest stuffed animal in the shop. She was elated with the gift.

So when do we stop being happy with the simple? Why is it that I so frequently catch myself admiring the figurative life-sized orca, or an awesome vehicle? How I make life complex!

The kids keep teaching the parents. Life is grand.