"Never Grow Up"

Here's another song that strikes a serious chord with me. It's Taylor Swift's "Never Grow Up."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I6D3abgQEos

If you couldn't tell by now, I am a very nostalgic person. I love to revisit my past, whether it's music, movies, TV shows, or just anything that gives me a warm pleasant feeling. I first heard this song in my senior year of high school and I won't lie, it got me pretty emotional.

As I said, it was my last year of high school, which meant I would be going off to college soon and eventually, out into the world to live on my own. It's stressful thinking about having to take on so much responsibility for my own life. I knew I wasn't quite ready for it and, heck, I still don't feel quite ready. It's times like this when I wish I could just go back to being a young kid because, when you're that young, life is so much simpler, just as the song says. Swift sings about how, when you're young, you've got your whole life ahead of you and you don't have to worry about things like finding a well-paying job, managing your own taxes, or getting a driver's license. Your responsibilities are usually limited to school work, household chores and friends. Sometimes I wish everything could be the same as it was when I was a kid.

But there's also another point to be made here. It's one thing to be nostalgic, but it's another thing to live in the past. I don't think there's anything wrong with looking back on fond memories of childhood. In fact, it's where I get most of my inspiration for my writing. However, I believe there has to be a limit. Everybody says that if you're always looking back, then you can't see what's right in front of you. I believe that to be true, but for me, it's easier said than done. Sometimes, the present gets to be just too much and I just need a nice trip down memory lane. I think everybody does from time to time.

I think this song is not about just plain never growing up (like in a Peter Pan sort of way), but about retaining that childlike wonder into adulthood and staying faithful to your inner child. I'm a child at heart and I still enjoy lots of the same things I did when I was younger. I know I have to grow up and learn to make my own way in the world, but I don't think that means I can't still have the spirit of a little kid.