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On the road from responsibility …

… to play. Really? Are these mutually exclusive? If so, then I am destined for a play-less future because I have a very strong responsibility streak. I choose to believe they can coexist. And I’m here, in these next few posts, to share some of the demons that are getting in my way as I explore the topic of play.

Can’t help but notice the rhyme, the playful rhyme, that just rolled off the finger tips! If you missed it, that’s okay but you can return and find “way” and “play” in that last sentence!

Demon #1: Time

Did you take the time to go back and speak aloud that sentence until it rhymed for you? Did you play with the cadence until it worked?

Why not?
What stopped you from playing for a moment?
Was it a perceived lack of time?

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I don’t want to!

I tried to write an article for you on Wednesday, the day I set aside for such things. And I just couldn’t. Everything in my inner being was screaming, “I don’t want to!” So I didn’t.

Maybe it’s the result of my current focus on play for an upcoming talk. Play includes being in the zone, free, engaged, often thoughtless, or lost in the activity. On Wednesday, when the to-do list said, “write a blog post”, it was hard. I couldn’t decide what to write about and nothing I tried was playful or engaging.

Finally, I listened  to “I don’t want to!” and stopped trying.

Where are you trying too hard?
What needs to stop?
What brings you to “I don’t want to!”?

Notice that it is only 72 hours later … and the very task that caused a two year old temper tantrum is being completed.

Just sayin’ …

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Independence is an Inside Job

July 4th is around the corner – this day we celebrate independence as a nation. What a gift freedom is for those of us who live here in the United States!

Yet, freedom begins within, with our thoughts, with choices we make around how we feel about the events of our lives. Without healthy independence inside, we can find ourselves locked in chains, stuck, unable to move forward with purpose and passion in our lives. These chains can be old beliefs which no longer serve us, emotional entanglement with another, inner voices which tell us we aren’t good enough, don’t do enough, don’t deserve to pursue our dreams.

When the bondage is within, independence is “an inside job”.

In what ways are you locked in chains?
What key will free you?

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Puddles

We usually think of a puddle as rainwater that was not allowed to flow naturally away. For the child in us, a puddle may be a source of delight!  Puddles occur where the ground or road or path is uneven. In time, these pockets become traps for dirt and debris which, in turn, render the rainwater dirty and undesirable.

Periodically, it is helpful to identify puddle pockets in life’s foundation and take restorative action. Begin by noticing the contamination:

What ideas and beliefs no longer serve?
What practices, once supportive, now drain you?
What relationships feel stuck?

Now dive in deeper. Dare to ask:

What in me has eroded?
What will rebuild my foundation?

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Another One Is Open!

You have heard the phrase:

When one door closes, another one opens.

I suspect that at any moment, there are actually many doors open to us. The impact of willful staring at a single door, however, is that we can’t see the others. Today, give yourself a chance to discover some alternative “doors”. Let these questions open you:

What is my craziest, scariest, wildest option?
What would I NEVER try?
Who would I ask for help if I knew they’d say yes?
What would I try if I knew I’d succeed?

Now … pick one and walk through that door!