Mary Harrison, Campus Carrier sports editor

In our own age, while we may not dismiss children out of hand, we tend to look down on childlike behavior. Just Google “kids are annoying” and look at any of the 497 million search results that pop up! 

It’s typical, in our society, for adults who do not enjoy being around children to dismiss their qualities as a net negative. However, there’s a difference between childish behavior and childlike behavior. 

These days, we primarily view children in a positive way when we talk about tapping into our “inner child” or look back on our favorite shows and games. Unfortunately, it is often immaturity and irresponsibility that we’re nostalgic for – which in the long run, do not make us good citizens.

As college students, learning to be adults who contribute positively to society, it’s important to not throw the baby out with the bath water (or, in this case, the bath water out with the baby). While we need to put aside immaturity, there are virtues in a child’s behavior that we can learn from, including being teachable and assuming the best of others.

I spent this summer with my family in South Florida. One night at church, with few young adults around, I slid into a seat next to two middle schoolers and their young friend, Quinton. Quinton was probably in the end of elementary school and cute as could be, so we quickly made friends.

During the service, Quinton would slide back and forth between me and his other friend. While sitting beside me, attentively watching me take notes, he asked softly “why are you writing in your Bible?” I quietly explained that I was writing down what God was speaking to me. He proceeded to observe with wide eyes, occasionally pointing and waiting for me to explain something.

This experience reminded me of the innate nature of children to learn from all those around them, whether or not those people hold official authority. As adults, we certainly need to employ our years of wisdom in deciding whom to copy – but we should not forget to be teachable like a child, asking questions and being willing to learn regardless of their position, such as your student work supervisors, a friend who has good habits, or an interesting professor you’ve never taken a class from.

Earlier in the summer, I went to the theater with my then 10-year-old cousin, Laila, to watch the Super Mario Brothers movie. As a side note, the movie was quite enjoyable, with some interesting metaphors to explore beyond mere child’s play. 

At the end of the movie, as we watched the credits roll, Laila struck up a conversation with a woman sitting by herself, behind us. I hate to admit that my thoughts immediately, though unfairly, turned judgmental. Why would a middle-aged woman be at the theater by herself on a weeknight unless she had no family or other responsibilities? Didn’t she work for a living, or just take welfare? 

While I initially judged the woman, Laila seemed to only have respect for her. She talked very openly and sweetly with this lady for several minutes, expressing genuine curiosity about her life and saying goodbye to her like an old friend.

I felt a pang of conviction. Why did my thoughts first turn negative instead of assuming the best of others? As young adults, with more life experience, it can be easy to default to “judging a book by its cover” or assuming that people act or believe in certain ways. Instead, we should think better of others than ourselves (Philippians 2:3-5) and see each person, individually, as someone to show love to.

This is not some sappy article trying to convince you that kids are just innocent angels – our jealousy, anger and self-centeredness also develop at a young age (just ask an older sibling). The problem is that these qualities tend to stick around, rather than the positive ones.

I’ll finish by bookending the story about Quinton. When the pastor began praying at the end of the sermon, I was still writing a long note in my journal. Quinton turned to me, and quietly said, “You should stop writing and listen.”

 At that moment, I realized that by making it a habit to keep writing rather than stopping and listening, I was considering my thoughts to be more important than how God was speaking to me through the pastor’s prayer.

Once again, God used a loving moment of correction to remind me that children are always watching and learning from us – but that maybe, sometimes, we should try watching and learning from them.

We must not forget that Jesus encouraged his disciples, grown men in the ancient Roman world, some of whom were tough fishermen, to have faith like a child (Matthew 18:3-4).