May: Just the Start of Play

May has flown, and there’s so much in the chapter this month that I could just park here awhile–but I won’t! In today’s post, I first want to draw attention to the three categories of fun that Rubin identifies: 1. challenging fun, 2. accommodating fun, and 3. relaxing fun. Preparing to run a 5K with a friend would be challenging. Taking the kids to Disney World would be a form of accommodating fun (though I bristle to identify it as fun at all!). Soaking in the hot tub would be relaxing fun.

While we might gravitate toward number three, she notes that the first two bring more happiness because they are “sources of the elements that make people happiest: strong personal bonds, mastery, an atmosphere of growth.”

For now, I’ll admit that seeking forms of play has never been a challenge for me; making choices among all the possibilities has been. I will testify, though, that adding play to one’s life is enriching far beyond the effort required. That’s why I’ll keep playing music, going to author readings (with friends), meeting Traci for early Saturday morning run/walks, and helping the grandkids find every blanket in the house for their tent city in our den.

Having just said goodbye to Sandy and Frank, our Memorial Weekend house guests, I’ve born witness to how play keeps people young.

I’m curious to know how others’ choices of fun sort out. Which of these choices have enriched your life most?