Have you seen my school bag for this year? It was definitely made with a child in mind, but I love it. It has The Little Prince embroidered on the front, standing on what I imagine is Asteroid B-612, and tiny sheep are printed on the lining of the pockets and embossed on the buckles and zippers. I bought it for two dollars at Gift and Thrift. It’s the best thrift store purchase I have ever made.
In high school, my French teacher assigned Antoine de Saint-Exupéry’s famous children’s story “Le Petit Prince,” known in English as “The Little Prince.” My classmates groaned about having to read it together every class period, but it was always my favorite part of the day. My teacher gave us each a copy of the book in French to keep and because I love it so much, I now have a copy in English as well as one with pop-up illustrations.
“The Little Prince” is the story of a pilot who crashes lands in the Sahara and encounters a precocious little boy who is, of course, the little prince. While the pilot mills around, stranded in the desert, the little prince tells him of how he left his home on an asteroid and found his way to Earth. He tells the pilot of the many strange people he has encountered on his journey, his perpetual fight against the baobab trees who grow in abundance on his planet, and a rose that he fell in love with. It is a very sweet story with an abundance of messages throughout although one is especially clear – the little prince is always finding grown-ups and their priorities to be absolutely strange and ridiculous.
Recently, I have been feeling too much like a grown-up. I go to school, I pay my bills, I bought a bridesmaid dress because one of my best friends is getting married, I even changed the oil in my car recently (albeit with much guidance from my brother). I worry constantly about my resume and whether or not graduate school is a financially responsible decision.
“The Little Prince” shows us that it is all too easy to get caught up in grown-up things and it is sad when we do so. This is something I need to remember and perhaps something you need to be reminded of, too. Yes, being a grown-up means having to file your own taxes and figure out what the heck a 401K is, but it doesn’t mean that you should sacrifice or tamp down the childlike part of you.
Follow in the stead of the little prince: draw strange pictures, ask big questions, play pretend. Maybe even carry around with you on campus a messenger bag clearly made for a little kid. Life is a lot more fun when you do.
