EXPLORE with Gumption
Maximillian Dippnall
Risk-taker. Joker. Leader.
The first Dippnall to dive head-first onto a tiled floor.
Imagine Dragons’ biggest fan.
The best 3-year old drummer I’ve ever seen.
A learning machine.
Stubborn as hell. Always on a mission. Always having fun.
Fiercely independent.
One of a kind.
‘I have a big idea!’
His eyes light up, his lips curl, he runs towards me. His whole being bursts with excitement.
I know what is next.
‘Daddy, daddy! I have a big idea!’ he says.
I get nervous when he says this. What is next is going to be a combination of crazy, exciting and dangerous.
‘Let’s go sing a song outside.’
‘Why don’t we build a castle?’
‘I think we should live in the sky.’
The best thing to do is to answer: ‘That’s a great idea my boy! Let’s do it!’
I’ve learnt that any other response will end in an argument that I cannot win.
Max: pure, honest, relentless.
He is a crazy beautiful little boy.
I wish I had more big ideas like him.
Zen and the Art of Parenting
I have three children in this world. Three little hearts with wide eyes, big dreams and deep laughs.
It’s a big responsibility. It’s something you don’t want to screw up.
But you do. Every day you screw it up. Sometimes quite badly.
They’re so pure, so honest, so there. Living in the moment. Be-ing. All the time. Present. Innocent.
Perfect.
You focus on the wrong things. You rush through moments. You get stuck in things that are irrelevant. You forget what is important. You let the Noise and Nonsense carry you away.
I’m not sure why — I’m still trying to figure that out.
You think you’re teaching them but they’re teaching you.
Parenting: learning how to be young again.
Childhood
We were all children. We were all bursting with crazy beautiful ideas. We were all artists with giant paintbrushes splashing streaks of fun on the world in front of us. Joyful.
Experimenting. Tripping. Falling. Learning.
Growing.
Living from our centre.
But.
But.
Life gets in the way. Life beats us up. We lose parts of ourselves. Really important parts. Now disappears. And there is just Yesterday and Tomorrow. Lists, bills and traffic.
The great human tragedy: Waiting for Godot.
But.
It doesn’t have to be like that.
Rather be awesome.
Take risks. Jump off of cliffs. Chase your curiosity. Laugh until you can’t breath anymore. Ignore what people tell you to do. Follow what you believe in. Make mistakes. Do crazy things. Live dangerously. Be present.
Find some friends, make a raft, head for the horizon.
Sprint. Trip. Fall. Head-butt the floor. Get up. Laugh.
Start again.
Life is short. Have fun.
Stay foolish. Stay hungry.
EXPLORE with Gumption.
An EXPLORE Value
