The power of play !

“When we are at play our physical and mental state merge into a unified whole, devoted only to the problem at hand – the playing of the game. After all, a game is just a problem (or set of problems) that need solving. When we truly play, our intuitive ability engages and our minds become fully focused on the problem that the game asks us to solve. Action and thought merge into an integrated consciousness to attend solely to the play activity.
Play releases us from the past and our ghostly voices and brings our attention into the present. Fear and memories of past failures or hurts vanish because there is simply no room for them to exist in the present. We are released from the bondage of our past wounds and cannot anticipate a negative future. There simply is no time for past or future in the Now. We call this experience fun – a peak experience. Fun is the antidote to the ills of our time. Fun produces a unification of mind and body and creates full involvement. Fun is not trivial, it is essential. Life should be fun.
Fun is not an escape from reality. It is a doorway into reality. Fun is a psychological state where attitude and judgment are suspended and the mind and body act in harmony to accomplish a goal. Physiologically, when we have fun our pulse races a bit, our awareness expands and our senses are sharp. We rise to meet the challenge and accept the unknown outcome of playing a game with positive expectancy. We experience any activity as fun as long as we fully give ourselves over to it without judgment. Something viewed as fun instead of a chore erases any expectation of judgment or the approval or disapproval of others. We play the game for ourselves - for the sake of playing.”

Gary Schwartz