My Connections to Play

• My Connections to Play."
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• Select two quotes that you feel summarize what play represented for you in childhood.
• “Play keeps us vital and alive. It gives us an enthusiasm for life that is irreplaceable. Without it, life just doesn’t taste good” -Lucia Capocchione
• “Play is the exultation of the possible.” -Martin Buber
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• Include two to three pictures of essential play items for your younger self.
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• Describe how people supported play when you were younger and/or the role of play in your childhood.

• My mother would let us go out to play quite a bit in warm weather. We were allowed to do about anything except when we got older we were more restricted. As far as play in school we had recess or PE every year  all the way until I was in the ninth grade.However, when I got in the ninth grade it was more structured. When I got in the tenth grade I was not required to take any more Physical education, and I did not because I was not good at any structured PE. I was always was the last one chosen for a team when they wanted to choose who was to be on someone's team. In addition, I just wanted to go to school and finished it because I thought it was what I suppose to do even though one time I threatened my mother that I was going to drop out.

• Write a brief entry on how you feel play today is similar or different from the play in which you engaged as a child and what your hope for young is now with regard to play. I think play when it is in children's yards is about the same as when I was a child just some of the toys are more advanced. However, some of my grandchildren love playing video games and games on the phone. I did not play games on the phone and play video games when I was a child. I think video games and playing games on the phone can be a problem for children today if their parents do not make them go outside and play. My one grandson was so hooked on playing games on  video games that his parents had to make him play outside. However, he and his brother are on football teams for young children. In addition, he is ten now and he now goes out and play. It was a concern at first that he just wanted to lay around the house except when his father had him on a football team and later on his father had to make him do that. I think video games and games on phones are fine, but they should be limited to only from thirty minutes to a hour a day. I think the video games are good brain exercisers, but should be limited because overindulgence in video games can be dangerous. My granddaughters sometimes are overindulgent in playing on their phones, but they are on a volleyball team and have good grades basically. The second youngest granddaughter grades are at the head of the class. Children themselves do not seem to like regular toys, but my granddaughters do like outdoor play and that is good. However, their father restricts them on outside play because of the neighborhood they are in. They mainly see him on the weekends and I think their mother lets them play outside more than their father. If children play in the yard and with other things like trucks, ride their bicycles, and with other things or imaginative things this constitutes good creative and physical play this is good and what children really need. Children play has certainly dropped and it is causing obesity compared to when I was young. I think children now think when they are playing video games and games on the phone they are playing.

• Include your thoughts regarding the role of play throughout your life and/or the role of play throughout childhood and adulthood.I had toys to play with and most were bought at Christmas time.I use to pretend I was superman by trying to fly by jumping off the porch. I made food from mud. I played in the woods. My brother, my cousins, and I use to try to swing from a tarzan vine in the woods. My brothers, my sister, and I use to continually go out in the woods when we moved to another house until I was an adult even though my mother would say come out of those woods. I think play is good and I am concerned about myself since I became an adult because I was not good at sports and did not comprehend the quality of play. I have not been involved in it much play after I became an adult. I  have taken several PE classes, but I still constitute play is for children and exercise is something I do if I want to do it or have time. I know play is important even as an adult. However, the only play that I have attempted to do as an adult is when I dance. I am a praise dancer at church, Many times I dance on third Sundays. I dance with the children in the Earlyheadstart classroom and play with the children in these classrooms. One time when I danced to secular music at my son's wedding reception, somebody thought I was not acting as a Christian, but dancing is fun as long as you are not dancing to sexual music, violent music, and abusive music. I am called to be a pastor, but I think some denominations don't like Christians to have fun, but we need to have fun. In addition, as far as exercising I have gotten to dependent on my car and also I think it is demeaning at times to be seen walking. I need to get out of that mindset and walk to some places. All in all if we want to stay young at heart, and help our physical, spiritual, and mental health we need to play