Play is How to Add Peace Within Your Relationships

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Phil and I were talking about how to get some balance between the daily barrage of distressing information and the peaceful interactions and way of responding to our daily lives that we practice. And as strange as it may seem, the answer that came to me was to be sure and get a good measure of play and new adventures.

The society we live in is one that pushes achievement and busyness over everything. The U.S. has the shortest amount of paid vacation time from work, and there are many jobs where there is none. People often feel a sense of guilt if they take time out to play, rest, and relax. Yet, it has been proven that play is vital to your health and well-being and your optimum brain function.

Many of you are familiar with Julia Cameron’s work in The Artist’s Way series of books. She describes a path toward optimum creativity, which involves something called morning pages, and taking at least a two-hour play date every week. I have known many individuals and groups who have done this program, and in each of the cases, people have shared how difficult it was for them to find the time to do the play date with themselves. Only two hours a week, and people have difficulty finding the time!

As with many things, you need to first apply this to yourself before you can take it into your relationships. Finding ways to have leisure time and to reach out for new experiences will open paths to growth and satisfaction. The more you allow this kind of time into your life and your experiences with yourself, the more you will be able to bring that into your relationships.

In relationships that promote living peace, playing is a critical factor. We need to recognize its importance and find ways to incorporate it into our times together. Sharing the joy of being together and taking the opportunity to just be, rather than to do, brings an intimacy and creates a bond that cannot be gained in any other way. Building shared experiences and adventures is part of the glue that brings you together when things get tough or the problems of the outside world start to pull you down.

It is important to recognize the value of time spent that’s not about achievement, but rather about just being and feeling and loving. Sharing experiences, laughing together, and discovering how just being with each other feels, how just being feels, is an art we need to develop for a balanced happy life and balanced happy relationships.

Photo credit: Maude Mayes
Photo note: Having a whale of a time

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