Making Time for Play

How a Simple Exercise Helped Me Restore Balance to My Life

I confess I have been a little lost lately. Usually, when I feel unsettled, I go for a long walk in the woods without headphones. No music. No podcasts. No distractions. I listen to the birds. I watch the animals and enjoy the flowers. I allow my mind to rest and my thoughts to wander. Unfortunately, a series of violent storms, a couple of heat waves and far too many mosquitoes made it more difficult to spend time outdoors. I needed to find another way to clear my head.

I started by giving my brain a break. I set a timer for fifteen minutes and allowed my thoughts to wander. After years of listening to podcasts at two or three times their recorded speed, those few minutes felt like an eternity. When the timer finally went off, I didn’t feel refreshed. I figured that meant the break hadn’t been long enough. I reset the timer for fifteen minutes and started it again. Miraculously, time sped by. I actually jumped when I heard the timer beep.

After the break, I poured myself a glass of iced tea. I had a vague sense that something was missing from my life, but no clue what it was. I grabbed a notebook and pen, determined to figure it out. I started by making a list of favorites. I wrote down everything that came to mind: People, places, memories, hobbies, stories, songs, and works of art. Then, I started looking for patterns. I asked myself questions. Which things on the list still light me up? Which are no longer relevant? Which are the most important to me? When I finished asking questions, I knew exactly what I needed to do.

The past few years have been difficult and the sad truth is I made them even more difficult by allowing most of what brings me joy to slip away. I stopped reading books and playing music. I stopped watching anime. I replaced my hobbies with work and spent most of my free time worrying. Once I realized what I had done, it was relatively easy to correct. I prioritized the parts of my life that I had neglected. I made time for my hobbies. I put them on the calendar. It hasn’t been long, but things are already looking up. Making room for play made a difference.

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