Some days, the universe just has your back. I smiled broadly this morning, thinking that it was giving me a not-so-gentle nudge mixed with tons of support. See, before I went  to the pool for my swim workout, I ripped off the page of my desktop calendar. It’s a Louise Hay calendar giving me a thought or mantra every day. And there for, Friday, Feb. 17 was this gem:

Play is important.

Today I allow myself to do something fun.

My inner child teaches me

how to relax and just enjoy life.

Yes. This was exactly the support I needed on Friday morning. So often we tend to think of play as “wasted” time but more and more science is supporting our need for unconstructed time. Our definition of “productive” can be so narrow. We get caught up in “what have you done for me lately” thinking. What if that type of thinking actually was counterproductive? What if it kept you from doing your best work? Burn out happens for a reason and it’s not because we spend a few minutes each day letting our inner child run around the playground.

Perhaps it’s time to embrace play. To embrace fun. To leave the watch behind during my run, or at least not be a slave to it. Perhaps it’s time to dance around my living room or giggle with my girlfriends. When I was little, I didn’t need many instructions. I made it up as I went along, allowing the spirit to move me while taking opportunities in front of me. I know I’ll get “the work” done. But won’t it be done better and more efficiently if I’m happy and relaxed and enjoying who I am and where I am? Challenge for the weekend accepted.