There’s plenty of time to be serious and let’s face it, most of the time that’s just what people are doing – planning, worrying, stressing, analyzing, keeping their nose to the grind, moving from one task to the other, having no time to smell the roses. And while there’s balance to be had in life, the main thing we lose focus of and have an imbalance of is work in place of play – how to experience life more lightly, have more fun, feel more vitality, surrender some of that load you’re carrying, and bring back that innocence into each part of your life.

I speak a lot about enjoying life more and having more fun, as it truly can be a game-changer. I know it can be hard sometimes when life seems to have thrown a lot at you that feels heavy on the heart, but the way out isn’t in digging deeper into that heaviness, but rather, finding ways to see through the eyes of your inner child, which will help lighten things. Laughing at ourselves and life, being silly, doing something spontaneous because it tickles your heart, infusing a child-like perspective of wonder and belief in all things possible, and reaching in to bring forth that tender, caring heart that simply loves.

So, while I am a child at heart big time, I still constantly nurture that child to merge even more of that innocence into my life and find myself more childlike now than even when I was a child. That’s not to say I’m not serious when the time calls for it, but I never let go of my inner child in the process. I choose to have her walk hand-in-hand in all that I do, think about, feel into, and take action on. I also engage her and ask her what she feels, so as not to neglect the wisdom and value she has to impart.

There’s been more than enough times when I didn’t really know how to love her, as she so needed, and I’ve committed to having her never experience that again. By inviting her into every experience, I get to experience greater wholeness and fulfillment that has the ability to bring harmony and healing to every forgotten corner of my heart.

It’s no mystery why I find myself surrounded by an armada of chipmunks and squirrels where we live, who all seem to congregate outside my office door – mirroring the inner child I have cultivated and even the childhood dream office of Wonderland I’ve created. And of course I have the magickal little bunnies and Astrid, who all reflect such purity, innocence, and playful harmony. Astrid also reflects my inner child and our interactions also help expand my interactions within for myself, and vice versa. We definitely assist each other in embodying greater wholeness.

I recently had opportunity to support a sweet soul in a distant, international Reiki Healing Attunement that also brought up this key theme of inner child love and embracing more innocence, play, and fun. So much so that a powerful display took place right before me while I was in the middle of the session.

Two giant squirrels – one of which was huge and bigger than any squirrel I’ve ever seen – both came running over to the sliding glass door in front of where I was working the session. They came up to the door, peered in on hind legs with paws and nose to the glass and were tapping to get in and get my attention. They would then run to my potted flowers and climb up them and play and then circle back and come tapping and peering in on me again at the door. This happened several times, until they knew I understood and then off they swirled their huge bushy tails and disappeared back under the fence from which they came.

I had never had such a strong reflection of animal spirit guides during a session, other than my own bunny loves doing things and receiving visions of guides for the person I was working on. But this time they decided to manifest in the flesh and I know if that door had been open, they’d have been right up on me.

The huge display they played out in front of me, I not only took away as meaningful for this particular client, but also as important to impart to the collective.

I didn’t get photos, of course, as I was deep in a session, but here is one (below) of the chipmunk friends that constantly visits, peering in just as the squirrels did.

I also have a couple of quite large mice friends that visit as well, along with lizards and birds.

It’s definitely forest play land around here big time and I giggle daily at the beautiful mirror, which warms my heart that my inner child feels safe, loved, encouraged, and cherished.

Chipmunks have been known to show up as lucky signs that grant heart wishes, symbolize abundance, reflect an explorative and adventurous heart, and mirror that free spirited outlook on life – all similar to squirrels.

And while they both reflect that perfect balance of work and play, they always get what they need done with that light approach. This demonstrates that work can be accomplished without pressure and enjoyed by dedicating yourself to nurturing more fun in your life and living in more balance with nature. A cozy, comfortable, and joyful life is possible, just as these playful creatures show us.

Inner child work has always been a powerful seed “key” to creating change. And when done with unconditionally loving courage, can be the impetus for empowering yourself in unlimited ways.

We all have a child within that is in need of our loving acceptance. No matter how strong and self-reliant you think you are, there is a time for tender vulnerability in everyone’s journey that is needed to cultivate a garden that your child-like heart can creatively and expansively blossom in. This will provide astounding results in your current experience and with all that you intend.

As adults we carry with us false beliefs from the past that as children we learned to believe. A lot of that includes the things that we were taught were “wrong” with us and so the greatest rejection living with us today is of ourselves with these beliefs.

Listening to and softening our inner dialogue to embrace the perfection of all that we are, is a needed part of our daily practice. It is important to know ourselves to be whole and forgive ourselves, as well as revel in the quirky beauty that our inner child has to share.

Loving your inner child will support healing the darkest experiences by shining light on the beauty that was always there. This opens doorways that the Universe will support you with when you are willing to partner with it.