Let's Play!

This post may be a kind of free association ramble, yet with Andrew McCutchen, of our first place Pirates, competing in tonight's "All-Star Home Run Derby," it got me thinking about the Snyder family version which lead to a reflection on the fine art of play.

A fond memory of mine and of my nephews was playing "Home Run Derby" in the field at my parents home. We spent many a summer evening playing home run derby and ours may have been more challenging because we played with wiffleballs and wifflebats. Of course, my brother Mark had the wisdom to wrap the wiffleball in black electrical tape which helped the ball to travel farther, yet, still left enough of the holes showing that one could throw a nasty bottom-dropped-out curveball.

As a kid at play and as an adult still at play and also instructing nephews, niece, and neighborhood children on the finer points of sports as provision for valuable life lessons, so much of my summer and those of my siblings was spent in that big field. We played wiffleball, we played "21," which is a great game to improve one's fielding prowess and also one's power of concentration as the Snyder's were known to play "full contact 21" and a body check or a hurled baseball glove was known to come your way. We played frisbee, we played football, we took batting practice where to get your 10 hits you also had to play the field (speaking baseball terminology and nothing more....), we played "Foxtail," we hit wiffle golf balls.....we just played anything and everything and had a glorious time.

For us and it seems those of generations previous, it was quite an easy thing to just gather together, have a ball (literally and metaphorically), make the rules (such as three fouls and your out), and just play.

We did not need a scheduled play date.
We did not need an adult to gather us together and divide us into teams and supervise the play.
We did not have to have a manicured, lined, and properly proportioned field.
We did not have to have a league.
We did not have to have a jersey.
We did not have to have all the right equipment.
All we needed was field, family and friends, and the fun of play.

There is something very beneficial to unsupervised, create-it-as-you-go play. Yes, you get exercise, yet you also tap into your creativity and understand how to play well with others. Anyone who every played with the neighborhood kids knows that the twink kid who dared to take his ball and go home risked the dread of being picked last or not at all. You learned that your actions had consequences and not to be an ass --- both valuable life lessons.

I am very blessed to come from a family that enjoys and knows how to play well. From balls to board games to the basics of making it up as you go along, learning to play well leads to living well.

Your assignment --- play something and have fun!

sj;