The first-ever International Day of Play is tomorrow, June 11th. Its intention is to preserve, promote, and prioritize play so that all people, especially children, can reap the rewards and thrive to their full potential.
As an adult, I know there is room for me to allow more play into my life; how about you?
Looking back, play didn't involve much planning or effort when I was a kid, and I think most young children don't have to think much about it – they do it. There's a natural inclination to explore their curiousity, use their imagination, and have fun.
I'm very grateful for the freedom to play when I was young. I grew up on a street with probably over sixty children and had so many friends to play with.
When the weather was warmer, we were outside all day. We would come in for lunch, go back out, come in for dinner, and have to be home when the street lights came on.
We used our imagination. We created games. We moved. We went on adventures in the woods. We explored. We interacted, developed friendships, learned about relationships, and how to communicate with each other. These things impacted our physical and mental well-being and helped us develop essential life skills.
Just writing about this brings an aliveness to my body and a smile to my face. I realize how special this was. It's less common these days to have a community like we had.
Play looks different for most kids these days. They no longer play with each other in this way. Their play often occurs on devices; they only sometimes see their friends in person.
In some ways, play feels like a lost art.
As adults, many of us have forgotten how to play. We're so overcome with responsibilities to work and family that our lives often consist of more seriousness and stress than we'd like to admit.
Can we create space for play and creativity? Are you open to it?
We want to keep this from our to-do list. "How am I going to play? I want to do it right." Or we might think, "I don't have time to play or be creative."
What about a simple intention of:
'I'm open to having more play in my life" and see what happens over time.
Pause for a moment. Think about something you loved to do as a child. Notice what you sense in your body and what a simple memory can evoke.
I loved to lie in the grass with my friends and look up at the clouds. We would tell each other what we saw in the clouds, and our imaginations took us to incredible places. We were in our own world, yet we were also present, developing awareness, learning to live in the moment, and being curious about the world around us.
What do you see?
The beautiful thing about our mindfulness practice as adults is that it reunites us with a childlike (not to be confused with childish) curiousity. As our mind is more present, as we are more grounded in our body, and as we observe our thoughts and feelings, the stresses in our mind and body dissolve.
Play relieves stress, increases endorphins, stimulates creativity, and brings joy and fun into our lives. We are returning to our true nature.
Please welcome the opportunity to play into your life this week. Who knows what kind of fun might show up!
With loving kindness,
Diane