Merry Monday to you, dear reader.
Spring certainly sprung over the weekend.
Here are some chirpy musings to keep you in that fresh frame of mind.
Let me know what you think, share and share alike, and have a glorious week.
A Tidbit From Me: Play vs Hardship
I caught a snippet of the kid’s film Frozen with my nieces the other day.
After some narrative tension by way of blazing purple forest fire, the goofy snowman Olaf is relaxing and chatting with some children.
“What do you think,” he asks them with frenzied concern, “of the ever increasing complexity of thought that comes with maturity?”
As he frets, the children begin disassembling him.
A little boy tries to eat his little snowball-leg.
A little girl plucks Olaf’s carrot-nose from his face and sticks it up her own.
They are all laughing, blissfully un-computing of Olaf’s mind-waffle.
Two of the boys I have got into boxing were roughhousing and messing around at the boxing gym one evening recently. I was stern with them, a couple of times. I have a day’s work behind me, I need to spar the competitors, I need to keep the novices occupied, and I don’t want to see them goofing around.
At the end of the session we are doing a core exercise circuit. Even some of the experienced boxers struggle. My abdominals are barking at me to stop, but I bite down on my gumshield and power through.
The two boys let out cries and expletives in their attempts to keep pace. As we all transition from one exercise to another, they simply collapse.
In their deflated positions, cramped and wailing, they reach over and feebly attempt to untie my boxing gloves as I’m trying to focus on the exercises.
Rather than irritating me, as their earlier behaviour had, this really amused me.
It was like two little puppies pawing at a big wolf.
For all the intensity of the situation, they still just wanted to play, blissfully ignorant of the complexity of human thought that comes with maturity.
What better way take the sharp edge off of hardship than humour and play?
The puppies were feeling physically exhausted, probably overwhelmed.
Instead of suffering in silence or grinding through the pain, they diffused their tension through play.
I have been supporting a sterling young fellow recently after he suffered a tragic family bereavement.
The last couple of sessions we have had together, I haven’t even raised the elephant in the room, we have just had fun. We have press-up competitions, we make fun of each other, we swim, we chirp, we laugh, we play.
It is so clearly a fundamental part of a happy life – especially for children – that it needs to be given more space and emphasis, not less, when facing hardship.
Kids laugh and play better than we do; we should cherish that, and perhaps try to emulate it too.
A Quote From Someone Else: Universal Currency of Respect
“Hustle – across age, gender, culture – is always respected. It’s one of the universal currencies of respect. The problem is when people want the respect before they’ve done the hustle.”
Alex Hormozi
A Question For You: Hustle or Play
Today, this week, this month, this year, do you need to hustle harder or do you need to play more? Or both? Or – lucky you! – neither?
Hope you enjoyed the tidbit, quote and question from me, every other Monday.
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The Works and Chirps of a Guernseyman 