Finis?

The day after I wrote the last blog post, it was brought to my attention that it was my last required post. Somehow I had missed that in passing. : ( So, I planned to write one more to draw things to a close and include some final thoughts....and it hasn't happened yet. As I looked at the date of my last post, my heart kinda sank. Three weeks gone by so quickly, and because it wasn't a requirement, best intentions left undone. This, I think, serves as a metaphor for what I worry will happen as this semester comes to a close: when I don't have an assignment to play and reflect and be present in my own life, it's going to get shoved to the side by the tyranny of the perceived urgent.

Fortuitously, though, a play event that our instructors organized for children required that I blog one more time, so here I am today, to share my observations on that event, as requested. This last assignment, though, also gives me the opportunity to bring some closure to this part of my blog, and talk about some of my own hopes for and- commitments?- to the future.

First, to the play event. Elementary school students, ranging in age from 6 to 11 met us all at the School of Education one Saturday morning. Waiting for them was a vast array of materials, ranging from paints to beads, to cardboard in all shapes and sizes, to gloves, to netting and decorative paper. The purpose? Whatever the kids decided it to be. We adults were there to observe and only help as requested. The idea was to see what the children would do and come up with when left completely to their own devices, decisions and agency. Various members of our class were video recording the event, and the rest of us fanned out to be available to the kids and interact when they wanted to. Since there were more of us than them, and others were already interacting with the kids and helping as kids requested, I chose to sit in a space where I could see all the children, and take notes about what I noticed. What was so cool about this event is that there were many of us there, so we were able to observe and think about the event from multiple perspectives, making the data we collected rich and multifaceted. Following are the main ideas I took from my own observational perspective:

• The idea of reimagining/repurposing: As I watched the various children, I noticed how they were able to take the materials and re-envision them with new purposes. For example, one child, Lh, upon seeing the stack of gloves immediately mentioned how they could be made into puppets, after which she made a group of puppets out of one glove, a different color coded character on each finger.  J grabbed a tube and used it as a microphone, while Q took punchout wooden letters, and punched them all out...then began putting them all back into their spaces, calling it his puzzle. Later, he took the same "puzzle" and carefully decorated it, now calling it his painting (or another similar word that I can't recall). These are examples of a single item repurposed and reimagined. Other examples included taking multiple materials and turning them into completely new and different objects, such as cardboard and popsicle sticks being major parts of a birdhouse, or cardboard tubing, colored duct tape and beads becoming a rainstick. Throughout the event, the children used the materials to create new innovations from materials that had an initially different purpose.
• Styles of play: Throughout the event, I noticed that different children seemed to approach this activity in different stylistic ways. For example, some students, such as Lh, didn't want to take a lot of time to brainstorm or talk about potential ideas. Once she had the opportunity to look over the materials being offered, she wanted to jump right in. When she finished one project, she would go back to the materials, look over them again for a little bit, collect some things, then get right to creating again. She was very decisive in her choices, and didn't hesitate or pause in her creating once she began. I also noticed that Lh was a solitary worker. She didn't really interact with the adults or other children as she was working on her projects. Another child, Ly, was likewise pretty focused and decisive about her projects. She didn't need creative help or suggestions, but occasionally needed adult help with holding things or cutting. Otherwise, she pretty much worked on her own too, and didn't interact much with the other children.  C, on the other hand, really enjoyed interaction with the adults, and particularly Dianna, who she would check in with, show her work to, and for whom she even made a necklace. K was another student who seemed to really enjoy interaction with the adults as she worked. Another child seemed to prefer peer interaction and support. E was working on a birdhouse, and at certain points along the way, she would call J over to show her what she was doing, or talk with her about the project. Overall, I found it interesting how each child expressed her or his individuality through how s/he approached this play event, how s/he interacted with the materials and with other people.
• An example of flow? We have talked quite a bit about Csikszentmihalyi's concept of flow, and I thought that Lh's absolute singleminded concentration and immersion in her creating exemplified this concept very well. I observed her for quite awhile, because I was fascinated at how absorbed she was in her activity, and how she seemed so much in her own little world. In the time I watched her (which wasn't the whole time), she didn't talk or interact with anyone, and rarely even looked up while she was creating. Occasionally she would get up and go to the materials table and look over things- then choose decisively and return straight away to whatever project she was in the midst of. It was very interesting to watch a child stay so focused for such a long period of time. Another example of this time of sustained focus was particularly interesting to me, because the child engaged in it was quite young, and who- I have been told- can be off task and move around a lot.  Q worked on his wooden letters "puzzle" for a sustained 20 minutes (I kept track of time) without changing activities or materials. Both of these examples, I think point to the power of interest, agency and motivation in reaching a state of what appears to be Csikszentmihalyi's concept of flow.

These are the main observations I made during the play event, though there were certainly other bits and pieces that I noted as well. It was fun to see what the children chose to do and how they reacted when given such free rein in their play. It made me wonder what would have happened had we had a set of adults given the same freedom. Which leads me to thinking about all of us in this class, who we started this class as, and who we have become. I remember how restrained and rather guarded we all were at the beginning of the semester, how we have progressively opened up more and more, allowed ourselves the freedom to be silly, to laugh, to experiment and to play together. I think for many of us, this play class has been life changing, myself included, and that's not something I want to lose. I don't want to go back to feeling guilty about taking time out to play. I don't want to think about it as something I do only when all the work is done (and it never is). One of the most important things that I have taken away from this class is how absolutely vital play is to our wellbeing as humans, and that we really need to play if we want to live healthy and fulfilling lives.

Yet I know how the hurry and busyness of the world rushes in to take up my time, to convince me that there are more important things I should be doing. How am I going to counteract this, given that I no longer must play every week, or write about it, or go to class and be involved in playful learning? Well, one of the things that I have realized is, that if I commit to playing with others, I am more likely to not change my mind when so-called urgent things begin stealing my time. One of my colleagues and I have made a pact to get together for play dates this summer, and I hope that we can not only keep doing that this summer, but carry it into the next school year as well. Another thing I want to do is keep blogging. Not every week, but maybe every other week. Along with the small group of friends I have already invited to read this blog, I think I will invite a few others, and ask them for their help to keep me playing and writing playfully. And then, there's Dr. McMullen's poignant and oh-so-relevant advice to me, something that I really need to hold onto: "Keep Eclectica in your heart after you leave this course, and revisit her frequently and ask yourself, "What would Eclectica do?" to... achieve better balance in her life? to...clear the cobwebs in her brain? to...feel better about herself?" This quote and the Eclectica figure will go somewhere in my house so that I can see them, and remember one of the things that really does matter to me. Maybe it will go right above the table that I am moving into my bedroom so that I can leave out my creative projects, such as scrapbooking and my newly discovered art journaling (thank you, Libba!). Because since I have rediscovered this part of myself, I sure as heck don't want it getting lost again. So even though this blog post might be the end of this part of my play journey, it's also the beginning of the next part of the adventure....which I hope lasts for the rest of my life. : ) Play on!!!!!!

Play? Yeah, Not so Much

This week's play was an experiment. I was hoping to take something I enjoy about as much as a tooth extraction, and make it less heinous by incorporating playfulness in surroundings I enjoy. And that thing is...exercise. Talk about something I dislike, and rarely do! I recognize that for the sake of my health it's something I need to try to include in my life on a regular basis, so why not take a highly non-preferred activity and spice it up by incorporating playful elements?

So I decided to go biking. I have had my bike here for almost three years now, and have yet to use it. But the beautiful weather this week beckoned. I figured that cycling in the warm sunshine, with the cool breeze in my face, and trees and flowers just beginning to bud, would be a great way to get some exercise while being out in nature, something I like to do so much that I put it on Eclectica (my super-player)'s resume. So off I went, on an exploratory short ride. Here is what I learned:

• I am proud that I can still ride a two wheeler, despite not having been on a bike for 3+ years.
• I am extraordinarily out of shape, which made the ride more of a challenge than I expected, and less relaxing.
• It would have been more fun to walk, because I would have been able to take in more of my surroundings. I was so focused on not falling, not going so fast I couldn't stop, not hitting someone nor getting hit, that I wasn't able to really enjoy the scenery.

So did this activity end up being play? No, not exactly. While I did freely choose this activity, it lacked some of the important elements of play, like fun and flow. Did it help that I was out in nature? Sure, it was better than being in a gym. But here's the lesson: while we can make many things more fun by incorporating playfulness into our activities, some things just really end up being pretty much, well, work. And again, the intersections of work and play are a spectrum, not a dichotomy, and everyone's spectrum is different. I have friends who LOVE riding bikes, one of whom actually rode hers all the way across the U.S.! But for me, it's still really just exercise (read: work) with a play veneer over it.

What happened to the child who used to run around outside, ride her purple banana seat bike all over the place, and dance on the living room table? When did she morph into a primarily sedentary adult? I mean, I wasn't a totally uber active child. I spent a fair amount of time with my head in books, but I wasn't the total lump I feel like I've become. Was it when I became "too old" to be an exhuberant wild child, or was it when I moved a number of times and had a hard time finding a peer group to hang out with, or did my interests just change? All I know is, that at this point in my life, I want that active part of me back; actually I want more than I may have ever had.  Part of Eclectica embodies my fantasy of being physically fit so that I can go and dance for hours, or be adventurous out in nature, without it being a painful slog for me. I need her amazing insta-health regeneration. But since that doesn't really exist, what I really need is the discipline to do the hard work of exercising to get healthy enough to engage in the playful times I wish for. And maybe some day I'll get there. But for now, it's Eclectica who'll be salsa dancing the night away, or climbing a mountain.

Imago Dei

This may be my most personal post yet. I am grateful that my play class has developed into a safe space where we can feel free to share things that give us meaning, and that the people I have invited to read my blog are those who respect me and my deeply held convictions regardless of whether they agree with me or not.

So, one thing we haven't talked about much in class is the spiritual aspects of play. We touched on it when one book club discussed Diane Ackerman's book Deep Play, about going into our "deep sacred spaces" (chapter 3), and in applying that idea to making our body maps that day, moving into a sense of flow and an aesthetic experience that several of us found quite meaningful and moving. I was already considering the spiritual significance of play, but that particular presentation and activity really confirmed for me the importance of play in regard to spirituality, which I am going to try to articulate here, as challenging as it may be. You might wanna settle in...this is a long one. : )

My ethical framework and faith is central to who I am, how I see the world, and my place in it. It is at the core of my identity, and informs how I choose to live in the world. If I were to distill my credo into one phrase, it would be "Love God, Love Others."  This comes from a passage in the New Testament book of Matthew where Jesus tells people the greatest commandment is to love God with all your heart, soul, and mind, and that the next is like it: love your neighbor as yourself.  I see this purpose as central to my goals in life, and in how to live in a personally healthy way, as well as in community with others.

Where does play come into all of this? It seems to me that creativity, joy, artistry, and playfulness are part of the character of God. If there is a Creator, which I believe that there is, then the work reflects the personality and character of whoever created it. When I look at the world around me, I see an artist at work, someone who appreciates beauty and creativity- why else would we have thousands of varieties of flowers, or a gazillion types of saltwater fish in all the hues of the rainbow? Indeed, why a rainbow? I mean, yes, I know there are scientific reasons for all of these things, which I embrace, but it seems to me that the sheer variety goes beyond the base level idea of survival to something more. And playfulness: I just think of otters, of the polar bear and husky story in Brown's book, in little kids who may not even speak the same language, but who connect through play anyway. To love God with all my mind, heart and soul is to love this part of His character, the part that is playful, the part that reflects joy in beauty and in fun and in celebration. In fact, there are parts of the Bible where God calls for people to take time not only to rest, but to celebrate and enjoy life, to eat good foods together, to dance and sing and play instruments, to be out in nature, to tell stories, to laugh. In a word, to play. Thus, when I am playing in positive and healthy ways, I am connecting with God through play, thanking Him for the good gifts in the world, and in me.

Indeed, when I include play in my life, I think that I become more of the person God made me to be, because I am not foreclosing that part of my personality or identity. From all we have discussed in our play class, through all of our readings, discussions, and guest speakers, I am convinced that play is key to our survival and well-being. Even more than that, I think it is fundamental to being human. The concept of Imago Dei comes into consideration here; that is, the idea that we were made in the image of God. Thus, if God is, as I believe, a good, playful, artistic, creative, joyful being (among other things), when we express these characteristics in loving, positive, life-giving ways, we reflect His image, and connect with Him in a deep and meaningful way. This sort of connection seems like it could be part of what Ackerman describes as deep play, or maybe even one possible aspect of Csikszentmihalyi's concept of flow.

When I put all these ideas together, it seems to me that play can have a spiritual significance. In fact, a few years ago I read a book about spiritual disciplines, and the author, John Ortberg, spent a whole chapter talking about the importance of enjoying life, of taking time to be joyful, to play, to celebrate. He called times that we do this "Dee-Dah Moments." So, with all these ideas in mind, I decided this past weekend, that I would take time to have Dee-Dah Moments, and make the focus of that time the pursuit of joy.

I deliberately chose this weekend to reflect on the spiritual aspects of play, as it is the most significant time of the year for me: Holy Week, culminating in Easter Sunday. From Friday through Sunday, I consciously chose to concentrate on enjoying the people, events and world around me, putting aside my work and other concerns to celebrate and play. Friday began with distributing thank you notes and small gifts to people who have of late done very nice and considerate things for me, taking time out of busy schedules to support me. Later, I attended a lovely and moving Good Friday service, which ended with the congregation singing "When I Survey the Wondrous Cross" outside in the clear night sky, harmonies blending and lifting upwards. One might wonder how this event, commemorating the death of Christ, could be considered a pursuit of joy. I was reminded that without this tragic and somber event, there could be no joy at Easter, and so I took that time as a contemplative turn in my path towards the pursuit of joy this weekend.

Saturday brought me the joy of service to others. I went to a local shelter that serves homeless and other low income people, and with others, prepared and served an Easter lunch for all comers. What I particularly loved about this event is that while we cooked and prepared the meal, many of us sat and ate with visitors, breaking down a barrier of "us" and "them", to become we. I met a number of lovely ladies, and we had a good time talking, sharing, laughing, and praying together, and even exchanged phone numbers with one older woman. Another thing I absolutely loved was the number of families who brought their own children to serve others, helping to put up decorations, serve food, wash dishes, and play around or with the visitors. One older gentleman visitor who had a real heart for children was able to be surrounded by playful children who wanted to play with him, and for that time, he was free to be playful back. I love that these families are living out their deepest convictions, showing their children by doing, how to live joyfully in service to others.

Saturday afternoon was a bit of a switch! Off to a baby shower for one of my colleagues- and what a perfect weekend to celebrate a baby on his way, in the midst of a season that celebrates the beginning of new life. Saturday evening, as I prepared to host a large-ish group of people for lunch the next day, I turned to my love of music to keep me entertained and focused as I tidied up my very messy apartment. In doing so, I rediscovered music I hadn't heard in years, and one particular song once again reminded me of the significance of this weekend, and the encouragement and hope it brings me every single day. You can listen to it here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7TF35CmGB4k

Then came Sunday, a day of real celebration, the culmination of the rest of the Lenten season, and the last few days. I started the day with a lovely sunrise service at First Pres. Because of the drizzle, we had to have the service in the chapel instead of outside, but sitting in a small circle of people around a table dressed with the vibrant colors of spring tulips and the gentle flickering candles was a great setting to begin our Easter Sunday. A close friend of mine who was only in town for the weekend stayed after service, and we talked and reflected on the day together, then went to the Runcible for early morning brekkie. Next was a meaningful service at my own church, Exodus, followed by a wonderful dinner at my apartment, filled with lots of tasty food, conversation, laughter and celebration. When everyone else went home, a dear friend who I rarely see stayed behind, and we talked long into the night for the first time in over a year. What a beautiful way to end a wonderful, personally significant weekend.

Some people reading this may question where "play" and "playfulness" fits into all this. One thing that I have learned in this class is that play is not easily defined, nor is there a dichotomy between play and other activities. And it's different for different people. I think of how some of us recoiled in horror at the idea of statistics programs being a form of play, when Lina shared that she spent almost an entire Saturday playing with her new computer statistical software. For me, I see play in my time serving others, laughing and joking as we cooked, or as we ate a meal together. I see deep play in the sacred moment of singing together outside on Good Friday. There was play in getting together to ooh and ahhh over baby gifts and have interesting conversations at the shower. And there was play even in my cleaning the house, as I danced around to some funky house music between picking up stuff and putting it away. And in the end, too, not only play, but joy welling up in me: in making someone feel special when I went to see her and thank her, in cooking and washing dishes at the shelter in community with other people, in loving relationships with friends sharing a meal together, in laughing, in revelling in the sunshine that allowed me to finally open the door in my home, in heart to heart talks long into the night, listening to and affirming each other......Imago Dei in the best sense of the word.