This girl likes to have fun, if you hadn’t picked up on that yet, but “playtime” has had to be toned down these days.
From the time I was small, playtime revolved around hiking, biking, horseback riding, camping, fishing, and/or any fun activity out in the wilderness.
Over the years I’ve walked marathons (running them is silly), played softball, and at one point even played a game of tackle football in a muddy field, no joke. I was fast, light, and could take a hit!
Sitting where I sit now, with a rainy day ache in every single place that I injured myself over the years, playtime has had to become a bit less aggressive.
I traded my outdoor adventuring for online gaming outdoor adventuring (don’t judge), as I’ve no desire to collapse from trying to do things the way I used to. Not only that, but the embarrassment of being hand carried off the path by some young, strong, and handsome paramedics… no thanks!
I may not be a young spring chicken any longer, but this wise old owl has traded her adventure shoes for Meemaw slippers. Don’t think that this is just anybody’s game, no ho ho way! You wouldn’t think that rocking a baby to sleep would be so tough… until you have rocked them for an hour, while holding yourself in the most awkward and uncomfortable position. You’ll ache for days, trust me!
I guess you could say that my playtime has become selective now… I save up all my physical energy for baby, while I imagine, write, and virtually play online games. I also bake you virtual cookies each day, which I consider playtime, as well.
Living the way we live, at the present time, means my playtime is reserved for trail hikes in the park with my squirrel friends, and my writing. I still don’t have the ability to safely drive, so I do not go far from my hobbit hole, as I affectionately call it!
That being said, my mind is free to go wherever it desires… meditation, prayer or reading is the fuel for my inner playtime fires! Who else can say that they get to spend hours a day, just dreaming up things and writing about them? If there were a bunch of activity and people floating in and out all the time, I’m not sure how much writing I could successfully get done.
Ask any child who encounters me or any animal I have ever owned… I AM FUN! I had my grandson fully believing that we had a hilarious Troll that lived in the culvert just across the yard… I KNOW HOW TO PLAY!!!!
If you look back over all those stories I told you about my girls when they were small, you can see how much we played. They learned about magic Christmas Trees, a mouse that could trade Chapstick for baby teeth, and many more stories that I spun to fill their dreams.
With life rolling forward and leaving childhood in the past, I am left with nobody to play those games with anymore, in that fashion.
I had no intention of letting playtime die off, so I searched and searched… and then I found YOU! You are where I pour my imagination and dreams, hoping to bring a smile to your face or brighten your day. Every time you visit to read my wordy words, it makes my heart happy.
My playtime is in the world I like to create for others, gaining so much joy out of bringing smiles… or sometimes think about hard stuff in a lighthearted atmosphere, hence all the cookies you’ve had to eat!
Everybody that has seen the movie Mary Poppins, should have picked up on the fact that she just wouldn’t quit, no matter the obstacle. In my opinion, Mary Poppins embodied playtime, all the while, teaching valuable lessons to those children… as well as their father. All these years I have dreamt of owning a magic Mary Poppins bag, though all I have to show for myself thus far, is a purse filled with broken peanut shells, grocery store receipts, lip balm, and a bunch of stuff I can’t remember why I kept.
As far as answering the prompt question, playtime for anyone is whatever and wherever we make it… we all have playtime available in our hearts and minds that just needs to be let out! I think that might be the secret side of that phrase young at heart. Below, is the actual definition given by the dictionary, but it certainly doesn’t do it justice, in my opinion…
: thinking and acting like young people : active and having a lot of energy
I have to say, I didn’t expect the definition to be so short and loosely defined. It should read, Young at heart: verb Thinking and acting like young people that don’t need everything handed to them on a silver spoon, and continued activity of play and adventure, even after the body is no longer cooperating… just saying.
Playtime, for me, is to dream stuff up and write it out for you guys… whether you read it or throw it away. I play as I write and you have to choose to play along and read… playtime is our choice. If you would like to join in my fun, I play here every single day!
F.Y.I. all my cookies have no calories, because I replaced all the sugar with dreams and adventures, so eat as many as you wish… and let’s play!
Journey With Me! 