The 5-year-old fashion report says rainbows are IN this year.
In fact, #authenticson cries every time he runs out of rainbow clothes. So, naturally, I’ve been washing laundry a lot more often. I love watching him find his own voice and experiment with what feels most like himself. He also loves hats, any kind of hat. Pirate hats, cowboy hats, ball caps, etc. It’s the one impulse item (other than toys) that I have to heavily curb. Well, you say, it’s easy for 5-year-olds to get away with wearing anything they want?
You don’t have to be a 5-year-old to be allowed to wear rainbows.
It’s just that my son hasn’t felt the slings and arrows of a lifetime’s worth of personal criticism. He is still new and feels free to be himself. A chamomile-picking, song-singing, rainbow-loving guy. I dread the day when slings and arrows will start to rain down on his happy-go-lucky world.
I know slings and arrows have rained down on you as they rain down on all of us, as they have rained down on me. But, I also know that every single incident of personal criticism in that big library book of your lifetime had a whole lot more to do with the person slinging the arrow than it had anything to do with you.
Somewhere inside you there is still a 5-year-old singing in a rainbow shirt. Give that little kid a hug and go buy him a new rainbow shirt and be who you are—who you have always been. Our world will be richer for your happiness and freedom. It will be healthier when your creativity is let loose to play. Thank you for being your one true self and for sharing that with us. Rainbow power!
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Photo provided by the author
About Jenny Hoople
Jenny Hoople is a work-at-home mom raising a sweet little boy who is currently 4 years old. Her business is Authentic Arts for which she creates handmade men’s beaded jewelry and ceramic sculptures. Jenny is passionate about helping people realize more authentic life experiences. Follow #authenticson for more musings about raising an Authentic Man.
