Are you having enough fun time?

There is no time that is better than fun time. Most children would not have a problem with this statement. When we are young most of our time is fun time. The older we get, the less fun time we have. Fun time is spontaneous, unstructured and not goal driven. I get a laugh out of the corporate saying: “We work hard, but we play hard.” That is an oxymoron. Play and fun are not about hard or accomplishing anything. Hard is a macho concept that denotes a phallic reference that often seems to take ascendancy over the feminine in society. Thus, working hard and playing hard are more to be valued than playing soft or working soft. When did you ever hear anyone extol the virtues of playing soft?

Well, if you want to work hard, that’s good, but don’t play hard. Playing hard destroys the essence of play. Play is about freedom and spontaneity. It is going where you want to go, doing what you want to do and not having to answer for the results. Retirement is the oasis of play that many people dream of. People wait years for retirement so they can do what they want to do. Retirement is play time for adults. Once we retire, we can become as little children again. Can you imagine wanting to have a “hard” retirement. I would much prefer my retirement to be soft and leisurely. I want to take long walks in the woods, smell more flowers, kick more cans, take more long naps and get in as much fun time as I can get in. We all need to have more fun time. We live in a work-alcoholic world driven by time clocks and computers. Perhaps, there would be less stress and less crime in our society if we all had more time for fun. I know there would be less road rage.

How much time do you have set aside for fun today? Do you take time each day just for fun? What do you have to do to have more fun time in your life? What would your life be like if you could play more and work less? Why wait for retirement?