Post # 26 - The Art of Play: Why Adults Need to Have Fun Too

Posted under: Creativity, Joy, or Expression | The Full Life Edit

At some point, many of us stopped playing.

We traded hide-and-seek for deadlines, coloring books for spreadsheets, and Saturday afternoons of make-believe for errands and “being productive.”

Somewhere along the way, we absorbed the idea that fun was frivolous, that joy had to be earned, that play was for children. But the truth? Adults need play just as much — maybe even more.

🌿 The Moment I Realized I’d Stopped Playing

A while ago, I caught myself sitting on the couch with free time and not knowing what to do with it. I scrolled on my phone, half-watched TV, and felt restless. Then I remembered being a kid, filling hours with imagination and laughter without once asking if it was “useful.”

That moment stung: I had forgotten how to play.

🎲 What “Play” Looks Like as an Adult

Play doesn’t have to mean board games or playgrounds (though it can). It simply means doing something for the joy of it — not for money, not for productivity, not for a “result.”

Here are some ways play has crept back into my life:

• Drawing badly in a sketchbook just because colors feel fun.
• Dancing in the kitchen while making dinner.
• Playing card games with friends and laughing over who cheats at Uno.
• Karaoke nights at home, singing terribly into a wooden spoon.
• Building blanket forts with kids in my life and realizing I love it too.

None of this is about achievement. It’s about delight.

🧠 Why Adults Need Play

Research shows play reduces stress, boosts creativity, strengthens relationships, and improves problem-solving. But beyond the science, play reminds us that life isn’t just work and obligation.

Play is rehearsal for joy. It teaches us to let go of perfection, to improvise, to laugh at ourselves. It connects us to the present moment — the way a child immersed in Lego isn’t worried about tomorrow’s homework.

When we deny ourselves play, we flatten life into seriousness. When we reclaim it, we add dimension back.

⏳ The Barriers We Put Up

So why don’t we play more?

• Guilt: We think fun is a waste of time.
• Perfectionism: We avoid hobbies we’re not “good” at.
• Busyness: Play feels less important than productivity.
• Self-consciousness: We worry about looking silly.

The irony is that fun actually refuels us. Ten minutes of play often gives me more energy than an hour of forcing myself through another task.

🌸 How I Reintroduced Play

1. I gave myself permission to be bad at things.
   My doodles are messy. My karaoke is off-key. And that’s the point.
2. I started small.
   A five-minute dance break. A puzzle on the coffee table. A quick round of a silly game with family.
3. I tied play to rituals.
   Music during chores, coloring while listening to a podcast, playful banter at dinner.
4. I said yes more.
   To spontaneous walks, to trying pickleball with a friend, to baking cookies for no reason.

Play doesn’t require grand plans. It requires a mindset: What would be fun right now?

🌟 What Changed

Since reintroducing play, here’s what I’ve noticed:

• More laughter in my days. I catch myself smiling for no reason.
• Less pressure. Life feels lighter when everything isn’t about goals.
• New creativity. My ideas flow easier when I allow myself to loosen up.
• Deeper connection. Laughing and playing with friends builds bonds that small talk never could.

In short: I feel more alive.

💡 A Gentle Invitation

If your days feel heavy, maybe it’s not more discipline you need — maybe it’s more play.

Try asking yourself:

• What’s something I loved as a kid?
• What hobby would I try if I didn’t care about being good?
• When’s the last time I laughed so hard my stomach hurt?

Then, give yourself permission to do something that makes no sense — except that it feels fun.

🌿 Closing Thought

Work will always be there. Chores will always be there. But so will the chance to play.

The art of play is remembering that joy isn’t childish — it’s human.

And in rediscovering play, we rediscover pieces of ourselves we thought we’d outgrown.

💬 Tell me: What’s one playful thing you’ve done lately — or something you’d love to try again? Share it in the comments. Let’s make play part of the full life we’re editing together.

– M.E