We forget that the counter balance for work isn’t self-care, that’s often maintenance and triaging damage, but play. The type of play which has no goals, needs little planning, and fills us with delight. Like stopping at your favorite hobby shop just because, wearing Gothic skull head tennis shoes to walk to work, keeping a toy unicorn in your purse, or taking a Magic 8-ball into meetings because it’s answers will be just as useful as some from the department heads and it will break up tension in an otherwise deadly meeting of death by a thousand Power Points.
Play needn’t be one more production to add to an over burdened schedule. It can be a secret thing shared with your bestie, it can be something only you know about. It can be the totally outrageous and embarrassing music you listen to only in the car on the commute so you can sing as loud as you want, indulging in a little ‘net surfing about something that is totally ludicrous or joyful or just makes you smile. It can be an item or picture you when you’re working that makes you smile every time you look at it.
Play is necessary. The more we work, the more the need for play. It’s as if we are working out only one side of our body. If we don’t use the other, it atrophies until we can’t use it at all. Then we wonder why it’s impossible for us to be happy when we’re in happy situations. Well, if the happiness muscles don’t work, we’ve warped ourselves into production machines and everything about us is geared to take on another project, then no wonder. Play helps us to remember not only why we’re working, but that we are. We matter. We are a being who does more than just work. Play time…