As a seven year old I thought, "Man, I can't wait to be 16!" And then came the dreams of being 18. Now, as I approach my 18th birthday, I long for the days of being a seven year old.

I long to be unaware of the cruelty in the world. I long for the days of sweet fun, playing with my cousins and friends, and naps whenever they were necessary. I especially miss those naps! I long for the moments to be held by my momma and mimi, to be comforted and rocked to sleep.

I could write for days about what I miss. I could sit and think of a million reasons why I want to go back to being seven and stay there forever. But as I sit here and write this, even with the number of reasons that I want to go back in time, I wouldn't trade this life and these days I'm living now for anything.

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Yes, those days as a seven year old were much easier than these days as a near-adult. Growing up comes with so many responsibilities that I struggle facing daily, but it also comes with the perks we all dreamed of as a kid. Honestly, the grass always seems greener on the other side, but there were things as a seven year old that I hated just as much as I hate having responsibilities!

So as for being seven again, I think it would be a pretty cool time to revisit for a little while, but I am excited to see where each new day takes me as I get older. I will always try to drill in to the minds of my nieces, nephews and future kids to stay young as long as they can. One day they'll be all grown up and will understand just what I meant in this article.