We can all benefit from more whimsy in our lives.
This past year, I walked into the wrong room and wound up discovering improv comedy. I’d meant to stop by a venture event–I walked by the room, thought it was empty, visited the neighboring room, realized it was locked, and, by the time I was heading back, the door opened. Maurielle greeted me with refreshing enthusiasm, “Hey! Are you here for RKB auditions?”
I had, for two seconds a couple of weeks prior, thought about maybe auditioning. But it was junior year, and things would be busy, so I didn’t bother to put it in my calendar.
But I loved watching improv (s/o shoot from the hip) and occasionally doing a silly British accent. Deep down, I wanted to give it a shot.
So I let her know I had 15 minutes, and that I’d have to stop by the venture event after. “No problem, come on in.”
I wrote my name on a name tag, said fuck it we ball, and ended up doing a couple of scenes before the 15 minutes started to fly by.
It was probably the most fun I’d had since middle school recess. It felt like play. It was play. Choosing a character and making a choice at the beginning, exploring what the scene would look like as we went, letting the funny unfold itself, and getting to laugh at myself and others was one of the most refreshing, giddy-joy inducing experiences I’ve ever had in college.
I wound up stopping by the venture event then going back to auditions immediately after to stay for an extra 45 minutes to do more scenes. I got called back the next day, then had my first show that Friday two days later.
And now, improv is one of my favorite things and will likely be something I carry with me for the rest of my life. I’ve felt happier, more in tune with myself, and genuinely feeling more capacity for joy that I had the two years prior.
All is to say, I’ve spent a good portion of my past two semesters whimsy-maxxing–through improv and making a fool of myself in front of my classmates, frollicking with friends and laying on sunny turf, taking a bodies in motion class, and other fun, silly, laugh-til-your-stomach-hurts experiences with friends. And it’s been one of the best things I’ve done.
I really realized this year that the work will get done. Things always work out. But the whimsy won’t always be here. And, if anything, really getting in the good laugh makes the work more efficient anyways.
Amidst this serious vibe that so many of us have caught as we move through college, I realized I lost a lot of my whimsy. It’d be there once in a while. But my self-talk had become so serious (and often negative), and I’d almost always be concerned about the immediate next step or how things would be that I felt like I didn’t have time for play.
But play, especially now, is so rare but important. It’s what keeps our souls young, even as my posture goes to shit and work picks up.
So go run, frollick, heel-click, play freeze tag in a playground, dance, or whatever you need to do to feel that sense of play:)