The Possibility of Play
Friday, May 7, 2021
Camille De La Rosa
Camille is a freelance digital illustrator and storyteller who is passionate about disrupting feeds, cultivating creativity in her community, and coloring the world through her work. Her experience spans across the nonprofit and social impact spaces, from running social media for the nation’s largest API festival - the Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival presented by Visual Communications - to joining InHerShoes as a Content Creator intern, eventually rising to become the Head of Content Development. Camille is passionate about bringing her collaborators’ stories to life through her vibrant illustrations and impactful messaging. Her work has been featured across the digital landscape, from InHerShoes’ social media to Forbes. Connect with her on Instagram.
Pasha Dahncke
Pasha is a passionate and energetic communications professional who is a storyteller at heart. She spends her time writing, dancing, homeschooling and volunteering in her community. After moving across the country with her husband, two girls and dog, she started a blog in late 2019 to chronicle her transitions and experiences. Follow Pasha’s adventureshere.
With Spring in full bloom, and a growing population of vaccinated adults, the optimism in the air is tangible. I’m here for it (though I’d say I’m cautiously optimistic), and I can visualize the clouds of the pandemic lifting. As the days of reconnecting with our friends and families, attending social gatherings, and summer celebrations feel closer than ever, the possibility of play is on my mind. It’s time to come out of hibernation to re-enter the world. I’ll be taking those steps slowly, as I draw new boundaries for fun and socialization (outside the confines of my childhood home).
It’s scary to talk about crawling into post-pandemic life slowly, since it feels like most people around me are racing towards normalcy, but I believe it’s okay to feel this way. Life changed for all of us last March and for me, that meant drastically downsizing my social circle to fiercely protect my high-risk, immunocompromised parents at home. Amidst all this, I also lost my family hairstylist to the deadly virus that continues to wreak global havoc. He was the first and last person to cut my hair, and his death serves as another reminder that I can’t - and won’t - “go back to normal.”
I’m coming to realize that I’ve been forever changed by the isolation over the last 15 months (and not all in a bad way). As I turned inwards, I became more protective of my time, energy, and purpose. Some of the bright spots of the pandemic are deepened relationships, increased creativity, and a fuller appreciation of my natural self.
Change in the outside world, such as the racial reckoning that this country has undergone in the last year, has also catalyzed me to take up new actions. Though these issues have long been embedded and omnipresent in our country’s soil, I’m aware of my own role in the larger fight for equality, equity, and justice. Following the global uprisings sparked by the murder of George Floyd and the surge of violence against the AAPI+ community – with daily stories of our Asian elders being physically and verbally assaulted in broad daylight surfacing every other day—I have been searching for ways to personally support and uplift BIPOC communities.
That’s why I’m using the InHerShoes platform to bring visibility to the issues of our time and work towards a more equitable, community-centered world. This month, InHerShoes is launching the “Hold Us Close” campaign, which spans across mental health, motherhood, and celebrates AAPI+ Heritage Month. After a year filled with so much heartache, this campaign is a love letter reminding folks to keep their loved ones close while they’re here and to foster courage and community in the midst of fear.
Getting through what I consider as one of the most difficult times in my life has strengthened my soul. The emotional wounds and painful growth have made me appreciate the joys in life even more.
Why Play?
Play is often most relegated to the area of child development, but it’s something that applies and appeals to all, across age groups. For adults, play can add joy to life, relieve stress, supercharge learning, and connect you to others and the world around you.
In our hectic, modern lives, many of us focus so heavily on work, side hustles, passion projects, building our careers, taking care of friends & family, creating harmony between different parts of our lives, and finding our life paths that it can prove difficult to carve out the time to have pure fun. I also acknowledge that play can feel like a luxury that some can’t afford to take. Still, the possibility of play means that you always have the option to CHOOSE FUN and choose to do something that nourishes your spirit.
Speaking for myself, as someone who is building a budding career as an illustrator, I focus on play as one of the key elements to fuel my creative practice. It’s something that I have been purposefully incorporating into my daily life to thrive. My personal favorite ways to play are to get offline, connect with friends, soak up some sun (with sunscreen), listen to music, watch anime, read books, draw, journal, and experiment with new forms of creative expression.
Creating Opportunities for Play
To prioritize and maintain your social well-being, it’s important to block time on your calendar. For example, I set a weekly calendar meeting with two of my closest friends for our Tuesday chats. This weekly FaceTime has been a lifesaver for me through the pandemic. We’ve chatted about what’s been sustaining our souls; books we’re excited to read; our reactions to current events, and how we’re going to turn our ideas into action.
After a year of staying inside or remaining isolated, most people are looking for more ways to socialize safely with others who are vaccinated. Some of the things that I’m most excited about post-vaccination include: hugging my friends again, sharing meals at my favorite restaurants, and getting some long overdue self-care (my eyebrows are ready).
With all this said, I’ve changed so much during this time that I’ve come to recognize that I could also go without some of these things. In my pandemic downtime, I’ve enjoyed listening to music, tapping into my creativity, and deeply connecting with my inner circle every week. I love the feeling of existing in my most natural and authentic state, and that’s something I definitely want to take forward with me.
Time-Old Strategies for Play
Surround yourself with positive and supportive people: They’ll help you loosen up and are more likely to support your efforts to play and have fun.
Laugh! I’m looking forward to sharing space with those I love… and with that comes the sharing of stories, new inside jokes, and moments to just let go and laugh.
Find your Inner Child: Rediscover your favorite hobbies and passions from childhood. For example, I love using my Posca paint markers to doodle on my old film photos. This makes the old memories feel brand new again. Recently, I was on FaceTime with a friend who told me that she doesn’t want to send memories anymore (the ones generated by Instagram or Facebook); she wants to make memories, and I resonate with that thought so much.
Get Outside: Nature is healing and now there will be more things you’ll be able to do in groups now that more of us are vaccinated. I recently revisited my alma mater, UC Irvine, with my partner, and it felt like we were re-discovering our old stomping grounds again. We were picnicking, journaling, and experiencing our campus with a fresh set of eyes, like re-reading a book from your childhood. As we rediscover the post-pandemic world, I believe many of us will be new people in new spaces. Our backyards will slowly shift when we’re ready.
The Beauty of Balance
With so much uncertainty over the past year, it’s more important than ever to tap into sources of joy. As we shift into a new world with transitions back into the workplace and school, there will be new opportunities to connect with colleagues, friends, and peers again. I’m tapping into my 1% courageousness to take baby steps to re-enter the world as my comfort level grows.
Now that most county and state restrictions are loosening this summer, as vaccinations increase and Covid infection rates drop, I hope you find new ways to enjoy new freedoms, while also remembering how fortunate we are to have highly-effective vaccines available to us. Reading about the impact of the deadly second and third waves around the world, I continue to remain cognizant of the fact that globally, many people are without these advantages. One of my favorite illustrators, Rukmini Poddar, captured this duality between feeling blessed, but also feeling affected by the global suffering perfectly with her recent illustration of “May Feelings.”
After a challenging year of joys and sorrows, at this moment, I feel an overwhelming sense of gratitude. For me, it’s about appreciating the present, as well as acknowledging the past. No matter what ebbs and flows lay ahead, there is always room for the possibility of play as joy is something we have the power to chase and create. How will you pursue the possibility of play?
