My previous blog about play and experimentation was inspired by an “I wonder…?” question of my own. Recently, I discovered my first mandala hidden amongst my old high school graphic folder. I was curious to see what it could look like with different colouring. So I created my own colouring page and tried out a different colour combination, and then another. Without too much trouble or planning I had stumbled onto finding something to play with.
The other day I started wondering about what the mandala outline would look like in orange and green, which subsequently got me wondering about how many different ways I could ‘colour in’ the colouring page. This train of thought then lead me to wonder if I could colour in the same mandala page every day for a week. In doing so, I reasoned that it would be a great test of my creativity and inventiveness, while also giving me plenty of discussion and blog fodder by exposing me to common creativity issues, like making mistakes, persistence and being open and comfortable with the unknown.
But then, a week didn’t seem quite daring enough. Would it really push my limits? So what about 3 weeks? Hmmm… What about 30 days? A 30 day challenge? But the term ‘challenge’ didn’t seem to convey the right spirit. I really liked the idea of playing around and seeing this as a fun exploration, but I really had no idea where this exercise would take me. And then it dawned on me – I’d call it a ‘play adventure’!
So starting Monday 6 April, I have embarked on a play adventure where I will ‘colour in’ my Mandala Colouring Page each day for 30 days (Just in time for my Exploring Mandalas class that starts on Wednesday 6 May 🙂 ).To make sure that I stay accountable and increase my likelihood of delivering on what I propose, I’m making this promise publicly on my blog with the intention of posting my daily efforts on my Inner Creative Facebook page. You can see my first day’s effort below.
Who knows where a little wondering and play will take me? Just as long as I hold this all in the spirit of playing – taking action with a light-hearted and open-ended curiosity and a little less judgment and fear. I really have no idea how this play adventure will end, or where it will lead me along the way. But that’s ok, that’s half the fun of playing :-).
If you too are interested in seeing how this play adventure unfolds, then you are welcome to follow along by liking my Inner Creative Facebook page. Or you can join me by colouring in a version of your own (get a FREE copy of the Mandala Colouring Page when you join the Inner Creative mailing list).
Or if mandalas aren’t your thing, then you can create your own play adventure – by colouring, making or creating something else each day. The possibilities are endless. The only criteria is that it has to be something fun and playful (this is not about committing to clean up your spare room or to do your filing each day – unless that gets you really excited and invokes playfulness within you 🙂 ). If you do decide to join me on your own play adventure, then please let me know how it goes by posting something in the comments below.
So here goes…
How are you going to bring a little more play into your life?
I’d love to know. Please share your thoughts in the comment section below.
