Make Time For Recess

Hello everyone! Before I begin with what I hope to be a daily (or at least common) blog. I would like to take the time to explain the meaning of the title "Make Time For Recess" and what I hope to accomplish through my blog entries.

Do you remember when we were in elementary school and how much you looked forward to that 40 minutes (which seemed like hours of uninterrupted fun) of recess?  It was a time where you could release all the energy from sitting at your desk writing the alphabet, learning your multiplication tables, or just coloring within the lines. Of course, we would return back to the next subject when we returned, but just that 40 minutes was enough time to get us through the day. That 40 minutes was enough to allow you to see monkey bars as swinging vines above hot lava, the cage as a main control center for all your space missions, and the swing as your prop plane into the skies. It was within those 40 minutes you could be anything you wanted to be. But even more that that, you could just be you and begin to learn about who you were and develop a passion toward your future.

As time goes on, our recess went away and all it became was work. . . like learning how to multiply fractions then algebra, science, analyzing poetry, and so on. Now, of course all this has great value and is needed. I admit I enjoyed learning and still do like taking on hard subjects, however, I feel we have forgotten about recess. Our desire to succeed and passion for what the future will bring has been channeled to just focusing on the destination that you never truly know how far away it is. Our imagination has been beaten down by certain facts of life and by the fear of not achieving of the unknown, but that doesn't mean we should stop imagining what we are capable of and what we can be. For I truly believe we can be whatever it is we want to be. We just need to mature our imaginations to new things and not look at life as just destination points, but the journey of getting to those destinations.

Of course, we need to work. . . as we should. It gives us independence and fulfillment to provide for ourselves. It teaches us new skills and can open the door for other opportunities. However, just like the early years of elementary school, we still need recess. . . we just need to make time for it now. For I believe if we do, we will only become better at the work we do and not be so strung out about it. For we still need to give ourselves the time to dream, the time to see things in a new way, the time to explore and to be adventurous. The difference is that our playground has become something much more fascinating than the fenced in place with slides, jungle gyms, and fields. Our playground now is the world. It is a place that embraces imagination and offers so much to see. It is still a playground that offers numerous opportunities where you can learn more about the person you are and the person you want to be. You just have to begin to break down the walls (fear, doubts, lack of confidence) that you built to guard you from enjoying it. In other words, you have to start making time for recess. I guarantee you may just find that "40 minutes" is what you have been needing or what you have been looking for. So, I challenge you. . . make time for recess.