Just the other day I found myself sitting on a swing in the park, leisurely enjoying the company of one of my best friends while my 4 year old sat playing the train driver on an imaginary trip to the beach and my 8 month old baby boy giggled joyfully at being pushed on the swing for his very first time. Forwards and backwards I stretched my legs as I rose higher and higher up into the air. The sun was shining brightly and the chilly spring breeze brushed across my cheeks. I smiled and my baby was smiling too. One adult, one baby; both enjoying the simple, playful act of swinging through the air on a bright, spring morning.
‘Play’ seems to be the current hot topic for our society’s children; the heated debate of whether or not our education system is robbing children of their childhood and play is one you cannot help but be party to. Whatever your opinion, I’m sure we can all agree, play is a vital ingredient to the life of any healthy, happy children we know or would like to raise. But what about in the life of any healthy, happy adults we know or would like to become?
There are some fabulous and inspiring quotes out there from some of history’s greats. Each in its own way emphasising the importance of adopting a ‘play-full’ lifestyle in order to experience the fullness life has to offer. Here are some of my favourites –
“Life is a game, play it” – Mother Teresa
“Play is the highest form of research” – Albert Einstein
“Life must be lived as play” – Plato
“It is a happy talent to know how to play” – Ralph Waldo Emerson
“You can discover more about a person in an hour of play, than in a year of conversation” – Plato
“We don’t stop playing because we grow old, we grow old because we stop playing” – George Bernard Shaw
Through the wealth of their experiences they clearly discovered the great worth of being playful throughout life. So why is it as adults we shy away from playing, deciding ‘play’ is simply for children and not for grown ups? We’ve become an adult generation, many of whom have forgotten or lost the art of playing. Bogged down with work, responsibilities, stress, and expectations, the weight can all to often crush our innate spirit to playfully enjoy the simplicities of life; swinging on a swing, drawing a picture, bunny hopping a bollard, climbing a tree. When was the last time you did any of those things?
Play features boldly in our household, not just for the benefit of the children but for the benefit of my husband and I too. We laugh often, make each other jump, have races up the street and do silly dances to funky music cranked up really loud. And that’s just me and my husband, when the kids are around it gets even more crazy! People often ask us what the secret is to our cool, calm and collected (most of the time) life. Of course there are a number of things which contribute but one of the essentials is most definitely play. Together we are committed to having a play-full life; with play comes joy, and joy is like an inner strength which undergirds you when carrying the weight of work, stress and responsibilities.
This month I pose you this question – To play or not to play? Which one will you choose? I hope you are inspired by the quotes mentioned, I encourage you to join me in the game of life, come develop the happy talent called play, discover more about each other, stay young and live well.
written by Lizi Long
