Trapped Between Neverland and Reality
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“Forget them, Wendy. Forget them all. Come with me where you'll never, never have to worry about grown-up things again,” Peter Pan pleads, trying to lure Wendy Darling to Neverland, a place where youth lasts forever.
As my college graduation looms near, I find myself relating to Wendy, perched up on my windowsill, waiting to be swept away by Peter Pan to live out a life of immortal childhood.
The hardships of adulthood are something many of us are desperate to escape. Some inject plastic into their skin to look more youthful, others abandon their responsibilities to drink all night, clinging onto their “prime,” and some hide behind multiple degrees to delay the leap into the real world.
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Across culture, religion, and literature, the quest to remain forever young has endured over time. In Oscar Wilde’s most famous novel, The Picture of Dorian Gray, a man sells his soul to preserve his youth and beauty. In Greek mythology, Selene, goddess of the moon, wishes for her mortal lover, Endymion, to remain young and unchanged. Her wish is granted but not without a cruel twist—Endymion is put into an endless sleep.
Throughout history, people have fought and slaughtered for the promise of eternal youth. When they put their swords down, they invented technology like cryonics to preserve our young bodies forever. Although Neverland is a fictional place, the hunt for a place free of adulthood will never stop. But, to chase Neverland is to hold yourself back from all that lies ahead.
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As I reach true adulthood, I feel caught between two worlds—the one that clings to childhood and the one that is excited for the future. To me, childhood feels like home—a place I’ll always return to. Genuine curiosity is one of its most wondrous aspects. I once wanted to take a massive bite out of the world and soak up everything I could. But will that curiosity fade with the arrival of adulthood?
Senior year is full of these conflicting feelings, a tug of war within yourself. Nostalgia plays a decisive role in this struggle. It is one of the most potent feelings that, without a doubt, consumes me. It can be both a powerful and dangerous tool. When given too much power, it can hold you back, but if used correctly, it can reconnect us to who we once were and guide us to who we want to become. It is tempting to want to stay in Neverland, but I know what I can miss out on if I let nostalgia overpower me.
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The desire to bottle up my childhood and keep it as a keepsake will never entirely go away. The smell of my childhood home, my old Barbie dolls, and my first pair of ballerina slippers are all pieces of a time capsule of my youth. Even then, it’s never enough. A part of me will be young forever—my imagination, my openness. As long as I keep those with me, I keep my inner child alive. I can look forward and face the things I fear without abandoning her.
Strike Out,
Writer: Isabella Santiago
Editor: Grace Groover
Tallahassee