| When you were little, you probably played with joyful | | | | you listen to your inner child. "Grown-up" doesn't have |
| abandonment! Your imagination soared as you | | | | to mean lifeless. How do you reconnect with that imp |
| transformed yourself on a regular basis. One day you | | | | inside of you who wants to have fun? |
| were a princess. The next day might have found you | | | | Follow these tips, and you'll be well on your way: |
| playing cops and robbers. Instead of obsessing over | | | | 1. Make a list of playful things you'd love to do - dance, |
| your next meal, you toyed with your food and couldn't | | | | take a walk, read a book, watch a cartoon, ride a |
| wait to finish eating so the fun could begin again. Never | | | | horse, learn a language, draw, paint, color, cook, listen to |
| once did you doubt that your dreams would come | | | | music, flirt - play can mean different things to different |
| true. The sky was the limit, and you were the star of | | | | people. |
| your own show. | | | | 2. Schedule time for fun into your calendar. |
| How quickly things changed! You became all too | | | | 3. Make a decision to have one new experience each |
| serious and self-conscious as you worried about | | | | week. |
| looking foolish, being inconvenienced, embarrassing | | | | 4. Spend time with young children. |
| yourself, displeasing others, and being judged. Romping | | | | 5. Ditch the self-consciousness - it no longer serves |
| in the rain turned from a joyful experience to | | | | you! |
| something that would make a mess, get you sick, and | | | | 6. Limit the amount of time you spend around gloom |
| require you to do your hair all over again. Exercise | | | | and doom - in the form of the news, television, other |
| changed from playing tag, taking dance lessons, or | | | | people, or your own thoughts. |
| climbing hills to running on treadmills at the gym and | | | | 7. Make a wish list! |
| keeping up in aerobics class, which you enjoy more if | | | | 8. Pursue your passions! |
| your body looks cute in spandex. | | | | 9. Make a mess! |
| Whether it was making a fort out of sheets, blankets, | | | | 10. Take time to daydream! |
| and pieces of cardboard or changing Barbie's clothes | | | | 11. Have a pajama party! |
| to suit the occasion, your imagination knew no limits, | | | | 12. Have fun and celebrate your life! It's the only one |
| and you entertained yourself for hours. You didn't feel | | | | you have! |
| guilty for "wasting" your time. | | | | Copyright � 2008 by Holly A. Cox, L.C.P.C., |
| Are you feeling a bit of nostalgia? Well, it's about time | | | | C.D.C. |