The Play's the Thing

Art Linkletter passed away last week at the ripe old age of 97.  He would have enjoyed this event.

Art Linkletter, for those unfamiliar with his body of work beyond retiree life insurance TV pitchman, hosted a show in the 1960s (could have been the 50s) called House Party, which was the father of Kids Say the Darnest Things, starring Bill Cosby.  The premise was simple.  Ask kids questions about their lives, their beliefs, their families, and let the magic happen.  As any parent can tell you, following the circular logic of a child under gentle interrogation can tell you a lot about life's truths, and often times, a lot about the parents.  The unfiltered innocence and honesty is compelling, and our audience response to such transparency is to love them and laugh with them.  Love and Laughter - the cornerstones of every great TV show.

This event that he would have enjoyed was Lucy's preschool bridging ceremony, a celebration of the successful completion of the designated course of study, and the end of our monthly tuition payments.  Both achievements brought tears of joy and relief to my eyes.

Her preschool's educational philosophy is to learn through play, and the graduates demonstrated their mastery of the curriculum for an anxious audience of parents, step parents, grandparents, step grandparents, siblings, step siblings, nannies, au peres, and other invited guests, all performed with the steady beat of Pomp and Circumstance driving the action forward.  There was the boy who had to yell at the top of his lungs during the chorus of each musical number, clearly proving that he knew the words to the song better than his peers.  There was the debutante, dressed in chiffon, lace, and uncomfortable shoes, wearing a dour look on her round face as she crossed the stage, dour until a camera flash lifted the corners of her mouth to the ceiling and froze her movement into a well rehearsed glamour shot pose.  There was the young gentleman whose dance movements were exaggerated beyond the confines of the original choreography, so much so that nearby children had the good sense to give him a wide berth, partnered with a jealous glare.  And there was my daughter, who lit up once she recognized her mother and me in the crowd with a bright smile that will lit up our hearts for years to come.

Kids playing, making friends, and learning without preconceived agendas, without fear of failure, without the pressures of profit and loss, in a secure environment blanketed in unconditional love.  And look at what they were able to accomplish in language development, social skills and spiritual growth in 3 short years.  It made me wonder when playing and socializing become distractions from learning instead of the primary method for learning.  In play, the task itself is its' own reward, and play has its' own intrinsic value.  We are fulfilled by the process, and the task of play is in itself the result.  Perhaps real success and fulfillment in life is rediscovering that sense of play in everything we do.  Play is an innate activity, and we learn through play.  When elementary school begins, we learn that play isn't learning.  Maybe that's wrong.  Maybe it is unnatural.  Maybe true, deep learning only occurs through play.

Art Linkletter would have enjoyed this event because he understood that the joy and innocence of childhood is something that we should all relive from time to time, and learn from.  He knew that we can learn a lot from kids, if we'd just ask and listen from time to time.