1 Corinthians 13, Verse 11
When I was a child, I spoke as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child; but when I became a man, I put away childish things. 1 Corinthians 13: 11
Paul was wrong. You don’t have to put away childish things to become an adult; you should build on top of those childish behaviors, not throw them away. Most people are in such a hurry to grow up that they never get the time to learn the lessons of childhood. From an early age, I sensed that childhood was not something to be wasted. Perhaps I was just scared of growing up. At age 12, I got myself a simple ball to remind me of earlier days. At age 18, a friend made Frogger-Rogger for me and I have cherished him ever since.
Play is central to learning. In fact, play co-evolved with learning; in evolutionary terms, they are two sides of the same coin. Consider your own learning process with computers. When you get a new software app, do you carefully read through all the documentation before launching the app? Of course not! You launch the app and start playing with it. “What happens if I try this? That’s a funny button — I wonder what it does? Let’s push it and see.” Playing is the primary strategy for learning computer software.
Yet as adults we are reluctant to play because it is, well, childish. But have you ever asked yourself what the hell is wrong with retaining the most pragmatic aspects of childishness? It always struck me as odd that kids want to grow up too quickly. Some take up smoking because it makes them feel like adults. The same thing goes for drinking alcohol or engaging in sex. Anything that is permitted to adults but forbidden to children attracts them. I suppose that it is understandable to push against those limits, but in their rush to become adults, many people miss out on the lessons of childhood, and once they become adults, they suppress the best parts of childishness — play being the most important of these.
I have a few superballs (the high-elasticity plastic balls that bounce vigorously); occasionally, when I need to think, I go for a walk on the driveway and bounce my superball as I walk. When was the last time you bounced a ball as you walked?
Can you make interesting noises with your mouth? Sometimes I just like to play around and see what kind of odd noises I can make. With a little audio editing, I have used some for the various sound effects in my programs. Here are some from SWAT:
Add
Copy
Cut
Delete
edit operator
Error
Paste
Save
Yes indeed, every single one of these sounds came out of my mouth. Are you impressed or disgusted?
Here’s another example of play:
I still haven’t figure out a good application for this.
But that’s not all. You should try playing with facial expressions; how many interesting faces can you concoct in front of a mirror?
Play with words.
The key lesson here is simple: don’t leave that childishness behind; it’s an important part of effective cognition.