Per definition, PLAY is “ to engage in activity for enjoyment and recreation rather than a serious or practical purpose”.
PLAY is all around us, and it is more than an activity. PLAY is the follow through of your curiosity; when you grant permission to uncover the answers you have about yourself and others, the world and your place in it. The result is self growth, with a side of creativity and happiness.
PLAY ignites me. It is the most purposeless moments of the day that make the day most memorable (and shouldn’t that be more purposeful?). The feeling could be compared to streaking; I mean, what I imagine streaking would feel like. It is a quick decision, without much thought, other than LFG! It is wildly freeing. You feel rebellious, like you are the only one to do such a thing. The risk, to no one but yourself, gives you the confidence to keep going. There is no logical reason for it, other than personal joy, while ignoring consequences.
The end result? Maybe you learn that it feels good to wear a little less clothing, so you ditch your underwear or under shirt more often. Maybe you learn that you can run faster barefoot, so you opt for a different type of sneakers. This may encourage you to take more risks in life - drop out of college to travel the world, ask out your crush, speak up on a conference call, or disagree with your boss. Ask for forgiveness; rather than permission. Sometimes breaking the rules allows us to write new ones for ourselves. We deserve the thrill of the risk, the unknown and the memories it creates.
PLAY is, simply, a state of mind. PLAY allows us to escape the stress of everyday life, to reconnect with ourselves and to leave us with lessons that we can bring back into the “real world”.
During one of my own “playtimes”, I turned PLAY into an acronym:
P
Pause to be Present: Take a moment to stop. Like, really stop everything, especially technology, so you can be fully present. This allows you to be completely invested in the time you have allotted yourself to PLAY. The world can wait! Take a deep breath, close your eyes, and clear the distractions.
L
Learn to Lean into Laughter: Be open to learning about yourself, your body, your past, your future… Lean into it all, feel it all and laugh at it all when it isn’t going as gracefully as you’d like and takes a turn for weird. Weird is where the magic happens, so smile and embrace it. Life is not that serious.
A
Acknowledge the Awkward: Life can get awkward. Something will happen to make you uncomfortable, be it physical, mental, emotional or all of the above. This is where the struggle begins. The more we recognize and stay in the struggle, the more we learn. This is where PLAY becomes the lesson.
Y
Yes to YOU: Always say yes to you! What you want, what you feel, and what you need. Without your physical, emotional and mental health…what kind of You are you?
PLAY is all around us. Without it, there is no color, contrast, flirtation, laughter, music, movement or memory. I hope you will continue this joyride with me. The more I can inspire you to PLAY, the more we can inspire all to PLAY. The world is in dire need of some PLAY.