Have you played lately?
I hope so.
In Stuart Brown’s book, Play,
he writes that we are made for play and that it’s as vital to our well-being as
sleeping and eating. What may seem frivolous and nonproductive might make you more productive and invigorated. It can
bring a sense of excitement and adventure to life and turn work into an
extension of play.
Brown points out that all
animals play. You may have seen animals play like this dog
and horse or these birds
surfing. Apparently, even ants
engage in play fighting. (I wonder how he knew they were actually playing.) When
Brown researched bears he found that the ones that played the most, survived
the best.
For humans, play is
important because we can imagine and experience situations never before
encountered. Some ways we do this are through books and storytelling. We can
learn from characters how to live our lives. (Writers serve many important
functions!)
In the late 1990s, Cal
Tech’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory commissioned a study because their newly hired
engineers, even though they had degrees from the best schools, were “missing
something”. The study found that the best problem solvers were the ones who had
played in childhood using their hands to make things like soapbox derby racers
or take apart objects such as clocks.
Researchers have found that
rough and tumble play—friendly or play fighting—is necessary to develop and
maintain social awareness, cooperation, fairness, and altruism. Examples of
this type of play are tag, chase, and wrestling. This is different than
aggressive fighting.
While studying young murderers
in Texas prisons, Brown discovered an absence of rough and tumble play when
they were children as compared to non-murderers. (I wish the author would have
written more in-depth about these findings.)
Several companies offer fantasy
“play” camps for adults that can last a few hours or days. Some of the more
unusual ones are: gladiator training, space camp, gondolier training, and ghost
hunting.
I’m intrigued by the Covert Ops
Miami camp run by instructor
Garrett Machine (great name) in South Florida. I thought this was an
interesting location. Do you think it takes place on a golf course? The
brochure says you can learn to shoot from a moving vehicle. A golf cart with a
camouflaged pattern on it perhaps? (I’m verbally playing here.)
Brown boldly states,
“When we stop playing, we start dying.” So with that cheery thought, go play!
