Often, children surprise us by displaying a type of wisdom that most adults don’t possess.
So when Dr. Alastair McAlpine got fed up with seeing so much negativity in the world, he decided to share some of the beautiful things his young terminally ill patients had told him. He posted comments that dying children between the ages of four and nine had made to him about why life was worth living. And some of the things they came up with might just take you by surprise.
Dr. McAlpine is a palliative care physician in Cape Town, South Africa, so he regularly works with people who are near the end of their lives in an attempt to make them comfortable and ease their pain. He helps patients find joy and dignity in their deaths and takes away all the suffering that he can.
It didn’t take long for the children’s responses to McAlpine’s question to go viral on Twitter. Adults around the world were drawn to them, not only because of their simple wisdom but also because of the heartbreaking finality of the situation. We could all stand to learn something from these innocent little children.
From the mouths of babes, as the saying goes. Check out the video below to see some of their responses
Below are some of the lessons we can learn from these little ones.
1. Don’t spend your extra time on these things.
2. Make sure you give your pets enough love.
3. And show your parents how much you love them too.
4. Eat plenty of ice cream.
5. Read books with the people you love.
6. Don’t worry about what other people think.
7. Never pass up a trip to the beach.
8. Always be kind.
9. Don’t take life too seriously.
10. Find joy in the little things.
11. Spend all the quality time you can with your family.
Dr. McAlpine ended his thread with this simple but important message.
You probably already knew about the importance of many of these things, but hearing it from these young people who don’t have much longer on this planet really drives the point home. Let’s allow this wisdom to pervade our minds and influence the choices we make in our daily lives, so that we might spend time where it really matters and inspire others to do the same.
Please share this inspiring and important message with the people that matter in your life.