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Ricky Martin shot to startdom at age twelve as a member of the boy band, Menudo. As a result, he says that his childhood was cut short. Recently, he spoke about his efforts to stay in contact with his inner child.

“I left him behind, completely abandoned him. I started work when I was 12. I got on a plane thinking, ‘I want to be great, a businessman.’ These days, I try to do some of the things children do, to play every day. I spend as much time as I can with my four nieces and my nephew. It’s helped me a lot. These days, when I have to make a decision I think, ‘What would Ricky Martin the child do?’ The answers come from a very different place, a pure and simple one. It’s simplified my life a lot.”

I used to do that. Until my f-ing inner child kept whining about being fed and having her diaper changed and I realized that I’m not ready to be anyone’s mother–especially not mine.

Photos of Ricky Martin in Mexico City are after the jump.

Written by Lisa Timmons

(Image source, source)