How will you let yourself PLAY this month?

I’m so proud of myself as I sit down to write this message to you. Our July theme is PLAY.

My typical approach to a new monthly theme is to pull out a few of my books about a particular topic and do some Google searches.

But last week, I had a brilliant reminder of how much I love play!

My daughter and I went on a much-anticipated trip to Paris. It was a trip that we’d been talking about since she started middle school French classes. One week into the class, her teacher asked if she spoke French at home because she just seemed to know how to say the words the proper way. That was when we started dreaming of this trip. 

She and I are both planners, but after a busy year for both of us, we had a light-hearted approach to what we would do in Paris. We had an approach of seeing what we felt like doing each day, just to play. 

We saw some things, visited some museums, ate croissants, and then ate more croissants. Mostly though, we enjoyed our freedom. No strict schedule, new places to explore, and the random treasures we discovered along the way. 

Play, to me, is that flow of what is enjoyable. I loved having the time with her as a wonderful playmate.

I, like you, have the many responsibilities of most adults. And I also need play, the joyful part of life, in order to keep going. I can’t keep my head down, and mind focused all the time. I need the balance of mind on and mind off time. 

So what’s your definition of play?

Send me a story of your favorite way to play. We’re collecting stories of play to share later this month and offering a scholarship for the recipient with the best play story to our upcoming retreat, which will have many opportunities for play at River Mountain, Pennsylania.