Go Play
Remember when you were a kid and everyday was an opportunity to play? Whether it was playing dress up, house, school, making up a synchronized dance, putting on a fashion show, or one of the million other ways you played as a child, those were the days that joy was at the forefront of our existence. Granted, we didn’t have things like bills, jobs, taxes, or pandemics on the mind then, but the priority to play is something I am extremely passionate about normalizing.
Playing is like the toll road for our highest selves - the easiest way to access the uninhibited, pure, curious essence at the core of all of us. When did we get too old for play dates anyways? For setting time aside to be silly, to be creative, to explore the depths of our imaginations? Why do “adulting” and playing have to be mutually exclusive?
I recently was listening to a great podcast called Inquire Within with IN-Q and his guest, Allie Michelle, said something that stood out to me. While discussing children’s uninhibited and explorative nature, she said, “I think you’re more spirit than human when you’re a child…I think you still have a foot in another realm when you’re a kid.” I immediately thought, that’s exactly what it is. There’s this peaceful playfulness that comes from being so present - so untouched by the conditioning and wounds that are an inevitable product of moving through life - from parents, from teachers, from society, from all the interactions we’re exposed to that create our identity and shape our sense of self. The sense of self that says, “I don’t have time to play, it’s not as important as [fill in the blank]”. The sense of self that says, “I’ll look stupid if I play, what will so and so think of me?”. The sense of self that says “I don’t deserve to experience that kind of jubilance because there is something inherently wrong with me”. That self is the one that has not only silenced the inner child begging to be acknowledged, but in doing so, has created such a dissonance between our true essence and what we allow ourselves to experience in order to maintain the perception of the person we want others to see. The person that we have deemed is much more lovable than the true us. Surely this person will be more liked, more accepted than the me that gets jealous, that gets angry, that feels lazy sometimes.
I’m not saying drop everything to go frolic in the park or that all of this inherent programming is going to go away overnight. But, intentionally making the seemingly insignificant choice to prioritize play and give the child inside of us the stage for just a little bit - without judgement, without shame - we make the choice to choose a different self in that moment. The self that gives permission for uninhibited playfulness to create the joy you want to experience in that moment. You’re choosing the self that believes anything can happen. The self that finds joy in the wind on her face going down the little kids slide at the playground. The self that gets giddy at the sound of the ice cream truck coming down the street on a hot summer day. The self that takes time to stop and watch a lady bug exploring a flower in the garden. The self that gets overly excited and can’t help but vibrate with childlike enthusiasm. The self that plays with the whimsy that is present in every moment of existence.
As we get older a lot of us lose our ability, our desire, to play; to listen to our impulses to dance, make weird noises, frolic and flail when it feels good, to take our shoes off and feel the wet grass between our toes. But that playfulness is a direct connection to your uninhibited essence. The breath that gives life to your highest self.
So, I implore you - however you feel the call to play, indulge that impulse. Who cares how you look, who cares what passerbyers think.
Let your freak flag fly baby and GO PLAY.