Play is the exultation of the possible.
Martin Buber
Welcome to Day Five of Reclaim Play
Whether as activity or mindset, play offers a portal to wonder, awe, and the transcendent. If you’ve ever been so engrossed in play that you lost track of time, you’ve experienced one of play’s liberating capacities. If you’ve let out an impromptu whoop of delight when jumping into a lake or riding a sled down a hill, you’ve known the exuberance that play unleashes. If you’ve found yourself feeling more awake and connected to all of life after a night of dancing or singing or celebrating with others, you’ve tapped into a version of what the sociologist Émile Durkheim called “collective effervescence” — an experience that researcher Dacher Keltner says, in turn, can result in awe.
By whatever name — joy, awe, wonder, effervescence, whoop! — there’s a state of embodied and spiritual aliveness that is most available to us when we say a wholehearted yes to play. Through play, we not only have some fun, connect with others, and find new ways of approaching daily life, we get just a bit closer to mystery and to all that we cannot fully know. Play is, as Br. David Steindl-Rast writes, a true celebration of life — an essential key, in fact, to a meaningful one.
Today’s Practice: Celebrate What You Cherish
To set the stage for today’s practice, take inspiration from this group of women who swim together every morning in the icy waters of the North Atlantic! Their swims began for exercise but evolved into a playful celebration of life — an appreciation of the small things: the weather, the sun, the rainbow, the coffee! As one of them shares: “It’s good to be alive, absolutely.”
Today’s practice invites you to play as a celebration of life — a response to life’s gifts and also a way of opening the door to awe and possibility.
Step One: Identify What You Cherish
Identify something you’re particularly grateful for in your life, something calling for celebration and rejoicing! What is beckoning your great whoop?! Your alleluia?! Your health, your garden, the mountains or ocean, the sky, a beloved? Take a few moments to attune to the things you most value in your life. Consider making a list of 5-10 then choosing one for the next step in the practice. You might also review the first four days of the Pathway for something you want to celebrate and honor.
Step Two: Celebrate This Gift through Play
Come up with a playful way to celebrate this gift in your life, to give thanks for it — ideally something that you can do today. Consider the ways that play can be an expression of what you value and cherish, an honoring of it. In this way play is, paradoxically, a way of taking the gifts of your life seriously. Consider how the women in the short film above are swimming not only for exercise and connection but as a playful expression of the gift of being alive and the ability to move their bodies. They are playfully engaging with the world they love.
Step Three: Reflect & Commit
After you’ve celebrated what you value with your playful engagement, spend some with the questions below. These are big ones! Take your time.
- Is there any way in which your playful celebration of what matters most to you enhances your appreciation for that particular aspect of your life?
- Inspired by the theologian Martin Buber, quoted above, in what ways is your playful rejoicing a kind of “exultation of the possible”? Does it express possibility or awaken you to it?
- When you celebrate what you cherish through playful engagement, do you notice any opening of your heart or enlivening of your spirit?
- In what ways might play as a form of rejoicing bring you closer to the ineffable, to wonder, to the mysteries of life?
The Pathway Is Over, but Play Is Not
Once you’ve taken some time to reflect, look back over each day of the Pathway and make a commitment to reclaim play in your life going forward. Whether it’s engaging in more playful activities, intentionally connecting through play, adopting a more playful way of being, working on releasing the barriers to play, celebrating life’s gifts with play, or a combination of all of these, make a plan for yourself and put a future date on your calendar to assess how it’s going. Approach it all with ease and curiosity. May the playful path forward be a liberating one that enhances meaning and joy in your daily life.
Scroll to the bottom of the page (or click here) to find the Community Conversation space where we invite you to share your reflections about today’s practice or the Pathway overall!
You may also record a video or audio response to our video invitation below.
Deepening Resource
In his essay Rejoice and Play, Joe Primo writes, “The practice of grateful living — in its attunement to the now — is like the next door neighbor knocking on your door and asking you to come out to play. Answer the invitation, and you’ll find it’s a good day to rejoice.”
Rejoice and Play by Joe Primo
Research Highlight
Neuroscientific studies reveal that “when we play, our brains light up, and the neural pathways formed from repeated playful times (whether early or later in life) shape how alive we feel, how well we learn, how cleverly we create/innovate from that point forward” (Nat’l Inst. of Play). Connecting with others through play can open the door to collective effervescence (Keltner. Awe, 2023) which, in turn, can lead to self-transcendence, increased concern for the well-being of others, and an openness to the sacred (Pizarro, et al. Frontiers in Psychology, August 2022).
Photo by Hugo Ruiz
Wonderful and thought provoking content. I am pondering my scheduled play, i.e golf league, BINGO nights, swimming nights with my grandkids vs. Spontaneous play like enjoying bubbles at the birthday party and playing hide and seek. Both are good, but feel lighter and more open when I live in the moment. Have to remember that!!
Such a sweet video. I am aging; the women in the video are older but I am not so far away. I love their sense of freedom!
I was just sitting here, listening to a coming storm as it moves closer, and wondering what our world would be like if we could get our world leaders to play together monthly. Golf. Walking. A picnic. A movie. A meal. Can you imagine?
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Thank you for this week of reflection, for the great content and community. I’m feeling grateful for rekindling my playful spirit
by first seeing that some of my thinking about play had become stuck and full of judgment. Aging into 77 yrs old, I guess I felt
my playful days were coming to an end ! Not So !!
I’ve learned a lot from other playmates in this week and what I take away is that play is contagious and liberating. On my neighborly block,
I’m fortunate to live with all ages, infants to 85 yrs and this will be my new play field. We are neighbors who know one another’s names, kids
and dog names. And walking around the block, I carry that spirit forward; A simple smile and a good morning is a wonderful expression to share.
And this week, I’ve added music to nearly every home task at hand – so much more fun to sing along while I work now.
Thank you so much for this delightful webinar. It has affirmed the role of play in my life and given me great gratitude for my mother who always encouraged us to play as children and played herself. Thank you also to all the participants who shared so generously.
I found the best summary from my reflections from this week’s practices in the Day 5 Research Highlights: “Connecting with others through play can open the door to collective effervescence… which, in turn, can lead to self-transcendence, increased concern for the well-being of others, and an openness to the sacred.” I am committed to making this happen for me. I need to Reclaim Play. Thank you for offering this program.
Grateful for this 5 day series on the importance of play!
Fred Rogers got it right, “the child is in me still and sometimes not so still.”
I am more aware of how I present myself to others. I laugh and smile more, say hello to people I don’t even know. I embrace my community of pickle ball friends and Art Volunteer friends. We don’t focus on the Art product but the process and we don’t focus on winning or losing a game, just having fun!! I seize moments like weekly yoga with my husband and talking with my two adult children! How very lucky I am!!🤗😍😊
“Come out and play!” “Come over and play!”
Ahhhh! This is how we learn about our own connection with nature and with others.
I had not thought about my barriers to play before. Having to do that and write them down
opened my eyes to some obstacles (learned behaviors) that may be keeping me
from creativity, exploration, and plain old fun.
I don’t have a plan, but we’ll see if I might go ahead and tackle some of these.
Thanks.
Thank you for the 5 days of deepening the meaning of play.
Play in whatever form is life giving.
The last video resonates particularly as it reminds me of the many simple joys found in nature and the outdoors.
One wonder a day keeps our soul going.
Lastly, a play on the words :play and fun .
PLAY – Positivity, Laughter,Awe and Yes to Life .
FUN – Flourishing Unbridled Nourishment.
Play as a way of being generates effervescence in the champagne of life!
Here’s to more play in our lives!
Grateful 🙏🏻