When I was a child there were several activities that drew my attention before organized sports completely occupied me. Farming, fishing, swimming, archery, playing army, chopping wood, climbing trees, riding bikes, and any random physical assertion that challenged my strength: lifting, pushing, pulling, running, jumping…
All this took place in a cookie-cutter suburban neighborhood. Almost none of it was supervised. And up until just recently my adult life included almost none of these activites. I have begun to reinsert them. Not intentionally. They just started happening. Midlife crisis? Second childhood? Midlife blessing. Perhaps I’m preparing to die by finally becoming myself. I will be grateful if I have many more years upon this earth, especially now that I’ve rediscovered how to play, how to discover, how to save the environment and the world by celebrating eternal life planted deep within me.