I know, I know…how many times, as we were growing, have we heard this popular saying? It stresses on the importance of play in our day-to-day lives. What is life without games!? Our Maharajas of Yore and even our epics, the Mahabharata and Ramayana, tell us about sports competitions held by the kings.
As you will agree, when we talk about games, the first thing that comes to our minds is our childhood days. A significant part of everyone’s childhood involved playing games, outdoor and indoor, with his/her friends. Running behind butterflies, flying kites, cricket, basketball, chess, Monopoly, Pictionary etc are a few games people have invariably played as kids. Some children have imaginary friends with whom they play. We still smile to think of all the fun and frolic involved at such games.
But why are games important? Are Homo sapiens the only species that play games? Says Susanna Miller, “If animals play, this is because play is useful in the struggle for survival; because play practices and so perfects the skills needed in adult life”
Play is a natural and integral way of learning not only in human beings but also in animals. Forms of play often observed in young animals include running, leaping, chasing, biting and play fighting, much like little children mimic their parents. These games are important to them for survival. This is like training to them to meet bigger game and search for food.
Does that leave you doubting why these games are important for humans? From the time we were infants, we were taught to play different games. When we were as young as 3-4 months, we learnt to play games with lights and colors. Then, when we were 4-6 months old, we tried to stand and everyone cheered and encouraged us. Then, we played hide and seek, hiding behind our mother’s sari whenever someone tried looking at us. As we grew older, we played with our friends at school and at home and surprisingly, the games were always different. Most games require a healthy balance of physical skill and strategy, thus not only keeping a child physically fit but also preparing him for real life situations that he might face when he gets older. Hence, we can conclude that games are very important for not only our body, but also our mind and spirit. It teaches us discipline, teamwork and to gracefully accept failures. Here the child also learns to set a goal and meet that goal with a set of requirements. Games are exciting and train the brain to think strategically.
We live in a stressful world. Neither a child nor an adult in today’s world can say he/ she is stress free. We are constantly competing with others, running to meet deadlines; we are fighting high living costs. Amidst this, we are trying to bring up children and keep good relationships. We are doing what is called a balancing act and we are trying to keep our balance precariously. The rates of crime and suicide, most involving young people, are on the rise. In such a world, games help transport our mind away from reality and in doing so, relieve fatigue and stress.
Eminent psychologists say that the only way we can remove this stress is to relax by forgetting oneself and play some games. Keep good friends who are like minded, get together and play for a while. If you have children then keep aside some time to play with them. It is said you can understand your child better when he is playing, rather than when he is at other activities. The same holds true to your friends. Says Plato,” You can discover more about a person in an hour of play, than in a year of conversation”.
Psychologists in modern pediatrics believe that when they have a child in therapy, the best way they can understand the child is through play therapy. They say that a lot can be learned about the child by the types of games he plays.
Thus saying, I can conclude saying games are not a waste of time but a healthy, fun activity which relieves stress. So the next time your child says “Let me play”, you can boldly say, “Alright, I will join you”, rather than shooing him off to bed.
Well, how about a game this weekend?
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