I think this is one of the aspects of "becoming like a little child" as Jesus shockingly asked all of us to be. Children play *so naturally* and have fun without restraint or the need to somehow make it productive. Children are our best examples of joyful play; we just have to set aside our serious faces and join them every once in a while.
Ha, I only started following you the other day but you suddenly pull this out the bag. I have just started my own substack which is all focused around what I wrote my Theology Thesis about: how play can help our spirituality. So I read this with interest, thanks very much.
Griffin, really loved this article. The ending was exceptionally eloquent.
Back in early schools, sports/recreation was required as it was considered a necessary part of the human.
Contrary to what many people like to believe (or hope to believe), we are not “walking brains.”
Last year, at the school I’m currently teaching at, the group of Seniors were known for working hard and playing hard. We have quick breaks between classes, a designated 10 minute break during the day, and a study hall that can be used to play sports and talk amongst each other if one has finished his/her work.
The Seniors were ALWAYS playing when they got the chance… four square (soccer edition), throwing a football/frisbee, playing basketball, you name it. And it was beautiful. Their play also seemed to aid their ability to focus and do well in academic endeavors.
What a great encouragement it is to remember that life calls for fun, laughter, celebration, and play just as much as it calls for work, seriousness, and productivity.
Ah no way man that is such a good anecdote that lines up exactly with the research. I love that. I’m also very happy that you’re a teacher! We need more people who are bright and kind to be in the k-12 school system. Blessings to you, man!
I really enjoyed this and have personally struggled for years to let myself have fun/play! I was just speaking with my spiritual director on Friday about how I realized that even before bed, I was reaching for books that I was reading primarily for information acquisition and knowledge expansion (in the traditional sense of the word "knowledge"). I realized I needed to keep those out of my bedroom and now my bedside table contains more "fun" novels or comedic nonfiction. I love that wedding scene in The Chosen, too. Jesus seems so fun. I forget that he is and was. I'm chronically over-serious, so I appreciated reading your essay and will continue to think about it!
I’m so happy you liked it! It’s so hard (I think for introverts or readers in general) to just let loose. I still struggle with this constantly but I think it’s very worth the effort. Thanks for reading :)
Play is an important and often overlooked aspect of transformation. I wonder if this is why Jesus specifically says you must be like children to enter the kingdom - kids come by this so naturally! This is so true and you named it well: "Some circles have such disdain toward the prosperity gospel that they over-correct and adopt the poverty gospel – where misery and suffering are the only way to holiness and fun is for heathens." I see this working in the financial services industry, too; it's a very interesting phenomenon to witness. Also, I think we can see that God has a sense of humor in the story of Balaam and the *talking* donkey. Thanks for sharing!
Have you read Josef Pieper’s “Leisure, the basis of culture”? It’s been years for me, but he hits some similar ideas also grounded in God’s playfulness, if I remember correctly.
Anyway, I love what you offered here! I know I’ve been conditioned to ignore how I feel and push through to check tasks off my list. So I appreciate the idea of setting aside a project when it’s no longer coming from a place of joy — may have to give it a try!
Oh man, I’ve never read the whole thing! Just chunks in various other books for my undergrad philosophy courses. I’ve been meaning to check it out in its full glory so I might have to move that up the list!
Awesome article, Griffin! As a fellow Gen Z human, I feel the anxiety to my bones not just from myself, but from so many people around me. It's clear that hustle culture is not the move, and I'm going to try my best to integrate as much play and joy into my life as I can so that I can be an overall better human being. I share your sentiment with wanting to produce great work, and I really appreciate your perspective on getting there.
Dude, these are the kinds of articles I wish I had been reading while I worked toward my psychology degree. They're intellectual and research-based, yet not so dry that my eyes glaze over.
Thank you for reminding us about the value of play! I've been battling burnout culture for the past year now, and I think I've just started to find a healthy rhythm again (for the first time in years). Reading this piece has encouraged me to prioritize fun again!
This is great! I’m a therapist and just as an anecdotal thing that I’ve noticed, but a key sign that people are getting better is them making space for beauty and fun, like cooking or going for a walk, just because it’s fun and for no other reason. A symptom of depression is anhedonia. Literally no pleasure in anything. I think there’s something in that. I’m noticing that just making space for fun has made such a difference in my life. Really enjoying your writing 🙌🏼
Oh my gosh that’s profound! You should write about that!! I’d love to read something in that vein. And thank you for your work as a therapist; I’m sure you’re truly blessing so many people :)
Thanks! Maybe I will. I’ve been thinking about it for a while. I’ve asked around supervisors and at training, but no one seems to know why this is. Maybe I could write about it as a personal essay observation and you could find out the science/theological reason for this and write about it? Could be a fun collaboration!
I love this piece. While I don’t share your faith, I love the insight you bring about work and play.
Being extremely overworked out of necessity myself (at times working three jobs - I’m currently down to two) I’ve always found that seeing my work as monastic transforms it into something holy.
An additional point — I believe that a lot of the burnout comes from divided attention. Not only can we not work well, we can’t play well, because we are constantly interrupting our focus via notifications. Focused work vs. constantly interrupted work is the difference between night and die, and people are so fatigued because it takes many times more energy to sustain such distraction. The same is true of play. All the best things come by way of presence.
this is so lovely. Also, I lived and worked briefly in South Korea once and it's so interesting yet also appropriate that that intensely workaholic culture would produce a philosopher of rest
Thank you! This is so timely for me as my husband and I are teaching a class at church this Sunday on fun. Fun is a topic that I haven't heard addressed specifically in church before. Catherine Price wrote the book The Power of Fun: How to Feel Alive Again. Through world-wide surveys she found that true fun is the confluence of three states: playfulness, connection, and flow. There's been a lot of research on play, but not specifically on fun. Of course, there's a lot of spiritual teaching about joy and fun is a type of joy. I appreciate how you have laid out your journey and given context for your implementation of deliberate play and meticulously regimented fun.
100% My RAS has been on my case lately telling me to slow down, write a bit, work a bit, play a bit etc. Have a plan but don't wreck yourself doing it kind of things. I've just returned to my role as Stay at Home Dad and the slow down has been amazing, but getting off "work time," and also, "summer time," is always a challenge. Thanks for this.
I think this is one of the aspects of "becoming like a little child" as Jesus shockingly asked all of us to be. Children play *so naturally* and have fun without restraint or the need to somehow make it productive. Children are our best examples of joyful play; we just have to set aside our serious faces and join them every once in a while.
Ha, I only started following you the other day but you suddenly pull this out the bag. I have just started my own substack which is all focused around what I wrote my Theology Thesis about: how play can help our spirituality. So I read this with interest, thanks very much.
Haha that’s awesome!! Hope you liked it!
A thought-provoking article. Also, I never knew of Byung-Chul Han, thanks.
Griffin, really loved this article. The ending was exceptionally eloquent.
Back in early schools, sports/recreation was required as it was considered a necessary part of the human.
Contrary to what many people like to believe (or hope to believe), we are not “walking brains.”
Last year, at the school I’m currently teaching at, the group of Seniors were known for working hard and playing hard. We have quick breaks between classes, a designated 10 minute break during the day, and a study hall that can be used to play sports and talk amongst each other if one has finished his/her work.
The Seniors were ALWAYS playing when they got the chance… four square (soccer edition), throwing a football/frisbee, playing basketball, you name it. And it was beautiful. Their play also seemed to aid their ability to focus and do well in academic endeavors.
What a great encouragement it is to remember that life calls for fun, laughter, celebration, and play just as much as it calls for work, seriousness, and productivity.
Very well done, my friend!
Ah no way man that is such a good anecdote that lines up exactly with the research. I love that. I’m also very happy that you’re a teacher! We need more people who are bright and kind to be in the k-12 school system. Blessings to you, man!
I really enjoyed this and have personally struggled for years to let myself have fun/play! I was just speaking with my spiritual director on Friday about how I realized that even before bed, I was reaching for books that I was reading primarily for information acquisition and knowledge expansion (in the traditional sense of the word "knowledge"). I realized I needed to keep those out of my bedroom and now my bedside table contains more "fun" novels or comedic nonfiction. I love that wedding scene in The Chosen, too. Jesus seems so fun. I forget that he is and was. I'm chronically over-serious, so I appreciated reading your essay and will continue to think about it!
I’m so happy you liked it! It’s so hard (I think for introverts or readers in general) to just let loose. I still struggle with this constantly but I think it’s very worth the effort. Thanks for reading :)
Play is an important and often overlooked aspect of transformation. I wonder if this is why Jesus specifically says you must be like children to enter the kingdom - kids come by this so naturally! This is so true and you named it well: "Some circles have such disdain toward the prosperity gospel that they over-correct and adopt the poverty gospel – where misery and suffering are the only way to holiness and fun is for heathens." I see this working in the financial services industry, too; it's a very interesting phenomenon to witness. Also, I think we can see that God has a sense of humor in the story of Balaam and the *talking* donkey. Thanks for sharing!
So happy you liked it :)
Nice
Nice
Have you read Josef Pieper’s “Leisure, the basis of culture”? It’s been years for me, but he hits some similar ideas also grounded in God’s playfulness, if I remember correctly.
Anyway, I love what you offered here! I know I’ve been conditioned to ignore how I feel and push through to check tasks off my list. So I appreciate the idea of setting aside a project when it’s no longer coming from a place of joy — may have to give it a try!
Oh man, I’ve never read the whole thing! Just chunks in various other books for my undergrad philosophy courses. I’ve been meaning to check it out in its full glory so I might have to move that up the list!
So happy you liked the article :)
Loved this! All of the pitching and rejection and rewriting paid off - as well as the heart behind it.
Thanks so much :)
Awesome article, Griffin! As a fellow Gen Z human, I feel the anxiety to my bones not just from myself, but from so many people around me. It's clear that hustle culture is not the move, and I'm going to try my best to integrate as much play and joy into my life as I can so that I can be an overall better human being. I share your sentiment with wanting to produce great work, and I really appreciate your perspective on getting there.
glad you liked it!!
Dude, these are the kinds of articles I wish I had been reading while I worked toward my psychology degree. They're intellectual and research-based, yet not so dry that my eyes glaze over.
Thank you for reminding us about the value of play! I've been battling burnout culture for the past year now, and I think I've just started to find a healthy rhythm again (for the first time in years). Reading this piece has encouraged me to prioritize fun again!
So happy you liked it :)
This is great! I’m a therapist and just as an anecdotal thing that I’ve noticed, but a key sign that people are getting better is them making space for beauty and fun, like cooking or going for a walk, just because it’s fun and for no other reason. A symptom of depression is anhedonia. Literally no pleasure in anything. I think there’s something in that. I’m noticing that just making space for fun has made such a difference in my life. Really enjoying your writing 🙌🏼
Oh my gosh that’s profound! You should write about that!! I’d love to read something in that vein. And thank you for your work as a therapist; I’m sure you’re truly blessing so many people :)
Thanks! Maybe I will. I’ve been thinking about it for a while. I’ve asked around supervisors and at training, but no one seems to know why this is. Maybe I could write about it as a personal essay observation and you could find out the science/theological reason for this and write about it? Could be a fun collaboration!
I love this piece. While I don’t share your faith, I love the insight you bring about work and play.
Being extremely overworked out of necessity myself (at times working three jobs - I’m currently down to two) I’ve always found that seeing my work as monastic transforms it into something holy.
An additional point — I believe that a lot of the burnout comes from divided attention. Not only can we not work well, we can’t play well, because we are constantly interrupting our focus via notifications. Focused work vs. constantly interrupted work is the difference between night and die, and people are so fatigued because it takes many times more energy to sustain such distraction. The same is true of play. All the best things come by way of presence.
I like your thought of divided attention and definitely think that rings true - at least, for me personally
this is so lovely. Also, I lived and worked briefly in South Korea once and it's so interesting yet also appropriate that that intensely workaholic culture would produce a philosopher of rest
Thank you! This is so timely for me as my husband and I are teaching a class at church this Sunday on fun. Fun is a topic that I haven't heard addressed specifically in church before. Catherine Price wrote the book The Power of Fun: How to Feel Alive Again. Through world-wide surveys she found that true fun is the confluence of three states: playfulness, connection, and flow. There's been a lot of research on play, but not specifically on fun. Of course, there's a lot of spiritual teaching about joy and fun is a type of joy. I appreciate how you have laid out your journey and given context for your implementation of deliberate play and meticulously regimented fun.
I haven’t heard of that book! I need to check it out though. So happy you liked the post :)
100% My RAS has been on my case lately telling me to slow down, write a bit, work a bit, play a bit etc. Have a plan but don't wreck yourself doing it kind of things. I've just returned to my role as Stay at Home Dad and the slow down has been amazing, but getting off "work time," and also, "summer time," is always a challenge. Thanks for this.
So happy you liked it :)