Through the Eyes of Children...

The Louvre in all of its glory 

Through the eyes of children, everything is delightful... On a recent field trip with my daughter's preschool class, we visited one of the world's most beautiful museums, the Louvre. But the children weren't just impressed with the artwork or the museum itself. 

For them, the trip to and from was the highlight of our day. And although their opinion of true beauty might be misguided, somehow, I wish we could share it. 

We adults get on the subway at rush hour grumbling, seeing it as it is: dirty, crowded, tedious. The children burst into the crowded subway with energy and good cheer. They delight at holding onto the bar as I count the moments until I can swab down hands with antibacterial gel. They are happy to "entertain" commuters, announcing to them "We're going to the Louvre!"

After the visit, with more attention paid to the escalators than to the artwork, the children squealed with joy as they leaned face down against the glass pyramid outside to get a bird's eye view of the museum below. 

And on the way home, we were in for a special treat. One of the many "street musicians" boarded our subway car and started to play the accordion. Most commuters ignore this sort of performance, or perhaps toss a few coins in the person's cup. But today, the children rolled out the red carpet. They bounced on the seats, clapped in time with the music and shouted "encore, encore!" A few of the moms and dads accompanying the children dug into their pockets to reward the man for this show that clearly pleased the children.

And I smiled on the way home, half with humor, and half wistfully that as adults we lose this beautiful view of the world around us.