Freshly waxed floors of malls offer a polished look, encompassing my vision of what an American mall is. A place where Auntie Annies sell bucket lemonades, mall stations with teeth whitening services, and people walking in a smooth rhythm, their hands full of large paper bags.

As time passes, the perfectly white polished grounds form stains, which are the footprints of customers who roam around the mall. It leaves a small illustration, markings of size-3 shoe prints followed by light high heel-shaped marks that seem to be directed towards the same direction: Sephora. One can only imagine a child and their friends forcefully fully swinging ponytails, absorbing the white LED lights as their aggressive run begins towards the Drunk Elephant stand. 

It’s really a moment of artistic craft. An opportunity for elementary students to apply their knowledge obtained through 45-minute lessons with the creative freedom to design their desired potion. With their ingredient selection consisting of serums, retinol, toners, and moisturizers, the experimentations begin all on one lid. The process of potion-making cannot be disturbed by surrounding customers, and the process is highly explosive, typically resulting in stains, empty bottles, and splotches of products smeared onto the ground. 

Surely, this may be considered a destructive mess – but let’s take a moment to reconsider the perspective. As a victim of Mark Zuckberg’s Instagram reels, I can attest to its persuasiveness, the perfection that seems to only exist within the videos. Has anyone ever considered that their love for anti-aging potions is simply an act of admiration and imitation of the GRWM (get ready with me) videos found on their feeds? 

This still leaves a lingering question. 

Why are the looming wrinkles an eight-year-old’s concern?

What is the Mini Life?
Our minds, whether they carry the intelligence of Albert Einstein or an infant, carry beauty. In the small moments in which we let ourselves live a little – through teaching children how to jump or trip over our toes – the humor completes our train of thought. It is through curiosity that we emotionally and intellectually mature. Why are we striving to reduce this level of curiosity? Where has the beauty gone?

Will my mini-me ever know what it means to fail?