Be Foolish

This past Monday, I was scrolling through Facebook and saw a post that cited a recent study finding that chanting and mantra had no effect on changing our brain waves. As I'm reading I'm indignantly thinking "What? Who did this study...I don't believe it!" and at the end of the article it said, "April Fools". I was never a big fan of April Fools' day as the word "fool" or being "foolish" often meant doing something that we'd later regret. So the theme for this week has been tweaked slightly to the idea of being playful.

Last weekend, my husband Ed and I co-facilitated a workshop on Yoga for Healthy and Conscious Aging.  Some of the activities challenged our cognitive abilities, hand-eye coordination, and balance. Some of the practices included working with balls or bean bags with a partner with laughter erupting frequently throughout the session. At the close of the weekend, one of the participants noted her highlight as reconnecting to her ability to be playful. All of this inspired me to bring a sense of lightness and joy into classes this past week. We can cite many instances of challenging and difficult things happening around the world which can mean that life can feel serious and heavy at times. Connecting to the energy of playfulness and humor supports our mental health, releasing feel-good hormones and bringing smiles and laughter into our day. When's the last time you were really playful?

Recently, I was one of many adults waiting in line at a local health food store. People were sitting or standing around, looking rather stoic, some impatient, some bored. This little girl, likely around the age of six caught my eye as she was in her own little world. She was dancing around, kicking her legs to and fro, as though working on her private dance moves. She didn't seem to notice that nobody else in the establishment was doing the same thing as herself and it didn't matter. I thought to myself, "How awesome is that? When in our lives did it switch from being okay to dance around to feeling completely self-conscious?" Of course, as we grow older, we adopt certain rules of social behavior and decorum, but perhaps we could soften the rules at times and dance in public, go outside without shoes for fear of tracking something back onto the clean house tiles or get dirt or paint under our fingernails.

As a kid, my favorite thing at school was the ringing of the recess bell.  I would tear out of class and head either to the monkey bars, jungle gym, tetherball or dodge ball court, or engage in some tag or kickball. I would play hard and with full commitment, being so completely engrossed in the experience that the sound of the return to class bell always seemed to come too soon. Looking back, I can't exactly say when that free playfulness ended but morphed into more organized athletic pursuits and structure. Sadly, in some ways, life got more serious with commitments and goals and the art of play got dampened. That was until studying in my first year of physical education at University, where one of our subjects was called "Play Theory". I remember thinking, "Really? This is an area of study?" And as it turns out, yes, it is an area worthy of study as it relates to being so radically present in an activity that we enter "flow states". So in a way, each elementary school recess was another opportunity to get in the flow of simply playing and being in the present moment.

My thought for this week is to reconnect to your inner child, anywhere from 5-10 years old, before the filter came on and you were free to express and play. As a practice, close your eyes and see that six-year-old sitting in front of you. What does he/she say? What do they look like? And imagine your two selves looking into each other's eyes, one full of wonder, the other full of wisdom. What is the message each of you would give the other? Then allow your six-year-old self to merge with the current you and recognize that they are always present and have the ability to remind us to connect to the playful side of ourselves.

And if you need a nudge, play with your pet, your child or grandchild. Head outside and walk along a curb or skip. Let the energy of your inner child show you the way to release the imaginative and creative side of who you are. Play theory...it's not just a theory but something you can actually do. Now go out and find yourself a playground and get to it!