Something very telling once happened at a yoga retreat for trauma. I related the three parts of the human brain to yoga therapy principles that help overcome past pain. Nourishing the mammalian aspect of our brains with self-care activities and community support is healthy and sustains your overall enlightenment. In that workshop, the group brainstormed basic mammalian needs to feed the part of the brain where memory, emotion, and learning occur: survival basics, community, touch, love, order, leadership…It wasn’t long before they started repeating themselves but they missed one key need. “There‘s something you’re forgetting…think of your dog.”
“Food!” “Discipline!” “Exercise!” They couldn’t come up with it. After ten minutes I guided them into reclined postures and deep breath so their minds could rest and the solution surface. I left the room, telling to relax and focus on it.
“Could you just tell us?” they asked.
I said, “The reason I’m not telling you is I need you to understand how far off your radar this is.”
It had already taken a long time for an entire group of centered, intelligent adults to come up with this fundamental need. This shows how much it is missing from conscious self-care activities. Inevitably, however, someone thought of play. We went outside and had Recess for Grown-Ups. Some played Frisbee, others kicked a soccer ball around. A small group played Hide-and-Seek. I highly recommend it!
Many adults have forgotten how to play, or they think that we aren’t supposed to. As you connect to your creative essence you will become clearer and clearer on the importance of play. Some of the most enlightened people on our planet are incredibly playful. Have you heard the Dalai Lama laugh? He does it all the time! As we connect more deeply to our spiritual selves, it’s easier to take most of life in stride. As we open to our creative selves, we perceive more opportunities to enjoy life. The more open our minds and hearts, the more we can see the humor and light-heartedness in all things.
Exercise: Grown-Up Playtime
This exercise reminds you of some ways to play as an adult. After years of being programmed to work hard, achieve, and fit in, it can take some time to get back in touch with our playful selves. Cultivating a playful attitude keeps us creative. This is especially true if you come from a rigid or violent home, or had to grow up too soon. Even if it makes you feel uncomfortable at first, seek out some fun and playfulness.
Step 1: Can you remember what you did for fun when you were three or four years old? How about eight or ten? Did you ever play creative games? Even sculpting dough, coloring books, and paint-by-numbers give hints about your early creative aptitudes and interests.
Step 2: Remember the last time you let loose and had fun. I don’t necessarily mean being raucous or a trouble-maker – just clean, happy times. If you can’t remember, you aren’t alone. Many adults have had the fun “lifed” right out of them. Even if it was thirty years ago, remember.
Step 3: Remember that life is meant to be fun and there are playful opportunities all around you right now. Yes, now. Look.
Step 4: List activities that make you feel giddy, free, safe, and invigorated. Can you be silly? Prove it.
Step 5 (optional): If you need help busting out of your stoic self, spend the next hour speaking complete gibberish. Don’t do this at work but at home it is a safe activity. It is much more amusing to do it with others, though. Call up a silly or creative friend and tell them you want to practice a new language and they can join in. You will actually notice after a few minutes of gibberish that you begin to understand one another!
Your PM is so happy that you are remembering the intense emotion of “fun”. Even if you have trouble playing as an adult, there are many opportunities out there. There’s play in yoga postures and most other forms of movement. There’s play in just putting on music and doing what your body wants to do. The swing-set is always good for adults, even if all you do is sit on a swing and rock gently. If your wrists will tolerate cart-wheels, keep cart-wheeling. Or do somersaults in the pool. Speak in a funny voice or wear outrageous clothes. Look for the joke in everything; it’s always there.
Spend as much time as possible with people who make you laugh. Find ways to make others laugh. Continue saying yes to fun and playful opportunities. As you meet your mammalian need for play, enjoy the way it improves your health and point of view, as well as making life itself feel more like a creative act.
