I think one of the most profound ideas in child rearing was actually taught to me by my father.  Every little interaction with them from the day that they are born we teaching them how the world works, what love is, and what is important.  Playing is no exception.  Although my boys naturally play, I find that I have the ability to push what they think playing is, by showing them that they can do more.

This picture you see is a perfect example of what I am talking about.  It has been raining here a lot lately!  In seeing all the rain on our dead end road, I wanted my boys to experience the same joy that I had as a kid playing in the mud and water.  So naturally, I take them out and they have no idea what to do, because rain is not an everyday occurrence here.  “You mean you want us to get dirty?”… “Yes boys I want you to go have fun!!”  But you see even, after saying that they still just walked around in the water with their boots on.  I had to take it a step further, I had to get in the water with them… run around and chase them… get them riled up… and even splash them.  Once they saw this the inhibitions were let down and the floodgates of fun were opened.

We as parents have to rekindle that spark we once had when we were kids.  No, it does not feel the same… imagination bursting with emotion and the pure joy of play… but the joy that we receive, when we see our kids begin to experience what we once had, brings a faint glimmer of it back.