Finding Joy in the Everyday: Unleashing Your Inner Child Through Play and Laughter

Have you ever caught yourself smiling at a child's unabashed giggle and wondered, "When did I last let my inner child run wild?" That genuine spark of playfulness doesn't need to be a distant memory; let's rediscover it together. This candid discussion unwraps the magic of infusing play into the mundane, transforming household chores into scenes of laughter and shared jokes. We chat about the simple joys of game nights, the hilarity of domestic blunders, and how embracing a dash of planned spontaneity can breathe life into our relationships and day-to-day experiences.

Laugh away the little things with us as we examine the mighty role humor plays in love and camaraderie. Imagine turning a Star Trek mix-up into a bonding spectacle, or an impromptu dance-off becoming a cherished memory. We don't just chat about the concept; we live it, sharing personal tales of life's playful, unexpected moments and the warmth they leave in their wake. This episode might just have laughing more and appreciating the funny side of every day life.

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Love and smiles from The English Sisters.

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Chapters

• 0:00 Embracing Playfulness in Everyday Life
• 12:27 Embracing Humor and Playfulness in Relationships
• 22:36 Importance of Making People Laugh

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:00

How do we become more playful in everyday life and how do we introduce the element of, maybe, childfulness as well? Yeah, playfulness, yeah, because we know that children play a lot. Well, yeah, hopefully, hopefully. You would think that you would play as a child, so got to do more of that. Probably nowadays, we do have to do more. Anyway, that's what we're going to be talking about on this week's episode of Get Real with the English Sisters. So join us Also on YouTube so you can come and see us You'll see the video there and come and say hello on Get Real with the English Sisters, on Instagram or wherever you see us. Yes, so let's get cracking now. Let Sisters on Instagram or wherever you see us. Yes, so let's get cracking now. Let's get, I mean, playfulness.

Speaker 1: 0:50

I remember there was a time in my life where I kind of forgotten to be playful. Yeah, I do remember that you actually used to tell me that Mid-30s or something, yeah, you sort of became like overwhelmed with, you know, raising the children and the elderly parents. You know, which are both our elderly parents, because we're real sisters. We're real sisters, yeah, and both our parents were, were rather ill basically at the same time, which was really tough on us. It's really, really hard time. And we had the little ones. I had two, two children. Violetta had two children. So you know what are you laughing at? We still got them. We still got them, thank goodness. Yeah, but they've grown up now. That's why I mean they're not children anymore, no, they're 26. They're always our children. They're our children, yeah, though, yeah, I still, whenever we talk about them, they're like the kids. But yes, anyway, um, yeah, and in that particular moment, I think especially you.

Speaker 1: 1:51

You said I don't feel as if I play anymore. No, but I think it's not just that. I think that as we get older, we forget to laugh and smile. We've got like, we get the burdens. The burden, the reality of life, like hits you and you and and you just suddenly think there's no more time for play, yeah, which is not the right kind of thing, really, is it because there is always time for play, which is how we come?

Speaker 1: 2:19

Playfulness if you schedule playfulness into your lifestyle, you will become more playful. It's like a muscle that needs to be exercised. Well done, yeah, that's what I was thinking. It's like it's going to take effort, isn't it? Yeah, at first, especially because you're in the. You know the grudge, the grudge, grudge of everyday life. I don't even know if that's the right way. You know you're just like getting on with it, and you know, especially if you've got difficult things going on and even if you don't, but you're just tired and then but thinking you have to schedule playtime in, come on. What more do I have to do? You know, but when you actually do it, you know. Then you realize that it does so enrich your life, that it's well worth it. I think it's a little bit like that.

Speaker 1: 3:09

You have to schedule a date, say with your partner when you're in a long-term relationship, because otherwise it's never going to happen yeah, that's true. Or with your friends. You have to make time, you have to schedule time. It sounds horrible Because you think I should be able to schedule it. You do have to schedule time for it. You have to make time for planning. So, in order to make time for it, what do you have to do? You have to take time away from something else. But instead of thinking about taking time away, let's think about but that's what people do think like that, though. That's why they don't do that. Yeah, do it. What are you going to be taking time away, maybe more mindless tv watching or something exactly. So in the end, I yeah, I know you, you, you feel as if you because, because I do it too just watch hours and hours on you know my favorite tv show or whatever, but just saying, no, maybe not watch hours and hours of that and actually schedule time in to play as as adults.

Speaker 1: 4:07

Yeah, imagine is if what does play mean? Imagine, instead of say, watching your favorite show, which could also be considered like some time for you, you could watch a comedy show. It's definitely yeah, but it's not real play time, is it? Imagine if, instead, you said, right, I'm going to play a game with someone, even if it's an online game, but is it? No? But imagine if, instead, you said, right, I'm going to play a game with someone, even if it's an online game, but you're going to be playing, you're interacting with someone else, you're actually playing with them. Yes, I know, yeah, so, and like, why is it like? Why is it like at Christmas, we get all the games out? Yeah, that's what I was thinking, you know so. And then how nice it is.

Speaker 1: 4:44

But as soon as christmas is over, all the festivities are over, it's all finished, yeah, you forget about them and you put them away and but we could easily play a game. I'm going to do that tonight. Now, what day is it today? Just a random day, random day? Yeah, wednesday, I'm going to do that today. You're going to say let's play a game, let's play. Yeah, you've got all those board games, haven't you? I'm gonna get one out.

Speaker 1: 5:06

Yeah, they're quite fun, but they, you do, they don't want to do it. They don't want to do it only if it's christmas or something. They being the family members, it's probably. You doesn't want to do it. I don't want to particularly do it, but because you want to go into your little evening trance or whatever, going and watching TV and going online and doing what you want to do, yeah, just something sort of like mindless, where you can just take your mind away from your real day. Yeah, I mean, it's like an effort, isn't it? It's an effort To play the game. It is an effort.

Speaker 1: 5:36

It's an effort to play in your relationship as well, like what you were saying, especially, you know you can, you're both tired, etc. Whether it's a romantic relationship, whatever. You forget that element of play, which is fundamental, really, because that's how we develop, if we think about it. As humans, we develop through play, we do and we learn through play what things are good, you know, so we can. I mean, I know like in some couples they like doing the role playing. Well, hey, hey, that's perfectly fine too. Well, that's a form of playing. It's definitely a form of playing and it can spice up the relationship. You know why not? You're still playing. To a certain extent it's consensual.

Speaker 1: 6:19

You're playing, you're having fun, you're having a bit of a laugh, you're getting away from your real life and pretending. You fun, you're having a bit of a laugh, you're getting away from your real life and pretending. You're pretending, like when you're little, you pretend, um, you play, make believe, you pretend, yeah, you pretend to be to do whatever you want to do, you know, and you play. Thinking about, when we were little, we used to pretend all the time and play and pretend to be magical, to have magic powers and you know, have the one. That was fun, that was great fun. I still remember that.

Speaker 1: 6:53

Or dressing up and you know, and you were like, oh, who's the king and the queen and all of that, and you had all that power along with it. I was all dressing up and pretending, wasn't it? Yeah, it's pretending to be something that you're not all right, don't be so creepy about it. No, because I mean because it's it's play, though that's the element is, through pretending, through playing you, you can actually experience that world, can't you think you wouldn't normally experience? No, no, you wouldn't. And and but it does take, even when you're a kid. It takes effort, you know, you, we used to have to get all the chest of drawers out with all the clothes in it, but you had in the back. There was a problem. And then tidying up, yeah, afterwards. And.

Speaker 1: 7:40

But I suppose back in our days we didn't really have the option of going onto the screen, because there were only certain tv programs we could watch and because, you know, we're both in our 50s now. So that was it. You know it's not like you could have screen time where you could invent your own little magic world on the screen. You actually physically had to do it and create our own little worlds, but perhaps there was some great benefits in that too. There was a lot of benefit because learning and I mean now it's beneficial, it's creative as well. You can create, you can creatively create your own little worlds online as well. I'm not saying that you can't, and great fun too, and great fun and it's really good for your brain, yes, your brain training.

Speaker 1: 8:21

But what it is it's, it's not just you know, I suppose, letting someone else take the lead. You're participating in something. When you're watching a program on television, you're not participating, you're just watching, so it's someone else's narrative, whereas you're passive. You're passive, you become part of the story when you're creating it. Well, it's an active part. That's why I think it's, instead of passively watching, you're actively involved in something, so you're physically, actually actively doing it, whether you decide to go and learn how to dance, or, yeah, or, or play a game, or play sports, whatever it it is Sometimes.

Speaker 1: 9:04

I think that's why those watch parties are good as well, because you watch something, but you're together and you're commenting on it as well while you watch it. You know, like those people that watch a programme oh yeah, like my husband does not like it that much. I mean, he's used to it now, but if I comment on a program when I'm watching, it gets on his nerves. He wants to listen. Yeah, to every single word. Yeah, well, I might just get like in, I might get involved in it and start talking about oh, did you see what happened there? This is like you know, analyzing it. Yeah, yeah, and uh, that can be annoying too. Yeah, my daughter's better with that. She quite likes it, not always, but nearly always. But you mean that that's because the fact that it's a group, because it's interactive and you're talking about it as it goes on. Yeah, but you're still not actively doing it. I think that's why people like the reality programs as well, because they can have a laugh and talk about what's going on in the reality show. They can kind of identify whether they like it or not, but they can identify with it more as a group.

Speaker 1: 10:09

Yes, so there's that element of playfulness in it while you're watching it. It's not just something that you're just there watching, but it is different if you're actually doing it, if you actually go and I don't know, do something, like when you have to go in the sack and jump. You know, one thing is watching somebody else do the little race in the sack. Well, that's quite boring though, isn't it? No, that's really fun. No, watching it, oh, watching it. Yeah, well, you can have a laugh when they fall down or as long as they don't hurt themselves, you know, and you have a laugh and yay. But when you're actually doing it is a different, you know. It's a different experience. It's more fun as long as you know you're okay, you don't bang your head or something.

Speaker 1: 10:53

Yeah, I don't know why I thought of that game because I think that's when you were little we used to do at school. All right, okay, I used to have the sports day. So now, as we're grown-ups, what kind of play do we actually have? I mean, you play. You play golf, which is very playful. It is playful, is it? You say people get really stressed Some of them do, but in general, the way I play is I find it playful. Right, I'm trying to think what do I actually do to play? It's not that much playing going on For me. It you do to play, it's not that much playing going on it. For me it's playing a bit like with you.

Speaker 1: 11:28

Like these podcasts can sort of. I can sort of put them into that kind of play, because it's a moment for yourself, yeah, and and I find them enjoyable as well. So I can consider it. But it's not like real play, is it? That's not play? No, well, I mean it kind of is, but not really, no, no, I mean, well, it's playing golf. Play, yes, yes, because it's called play. It's called playing golf. Yes, it is playing. Yeah, just sort of that. Yeah, right, okay, it's play time. It's like fun time. It's fun time. Yeah, I mean it's also good for you because it's exercise and and before doing that, before doing golf, what would you say?

Speaker 1: 12:08

Your playtime was then probably gardening. Gardening, yeah, is that really? Sometimes I think that's hard, though it was hard work, but it was also playful because it's creative and I would look forward to doing it. It's outside, yeah, I guess. I guess I do that. Yeah, I do look forward to doing that, even though now I've got these allergies.

Speaker 1: 12:27

But I would like to start. I just want people to have like a more playful attitude, like to laugh more. Yeah, look for those little jokes in life, to look at the the funny side of it in life and find them funny. That's what I like. Yeah, me too, just like every day, even when you're like at work, to laugh a lot throughout the day, but to notice, notice the humour behind, to notice, to have a good laugh with your colleagues, to have a good laugh, to have a laugh. Yes, yes, that's it. Yeah, like, even when bad things you know happen, like the coffee machine breaks or something, oh well, yeah, come on, that's not. I mean, that would be tragic, tragic for who? For you, you get to work and there's no coffee, yeah, okay, yeah, I mean, I wouldn't like that. No, we don't like that. No, yeah, like that. No, yeah, that's true, some people could go moaning and moaning, but I would find the funny side of it and then say, maybe we can go, you can go outside, yeah, go to the coffee shop, yeah, across the road or something, or give us time to have a little bit of a laugh and bond with our colleagues.

Speaker 1: 13:37

So I think, in order to do this, we have to be, like, be a little bit more creative in the way we think about things. Perhaps, yes, yeah, and try and get out of our own minds a little bit more and become more childlike in a way. Well, yeah, I think that's what comedians do really well, because they look at the funny side of life, don't they? And they'll point it out, and they make jokes of it. Yes, so I think, if we make light of our own lives and, yeah, like, be more, take ourselves so seriously and be more, you know, have that little element of humor also in our, in our close relationships, and we have a funny little laugh and a giggle throughout the day. It's gonna make us feel amazing. Yeah, that's so important really. Yeah, it's like one of the.

Speaker 1: 14:19

When you ask somebody who do you want to partner up with in life like a romantic partner often say what are the most important qualities, they'll say I want, you know, honesty, and then they say kindness, but then it's, it's, they want humour, humour, humour, big part of it. You know they want somebody to have a sense of humour, don't you believe it? Why are you laughing at? I mean, this is true, you want somebody with a sense of humor. You do, well, I do, and I know that a lot of you do want that. You do want that, yeah, because it makes, because it's contagious, it makes being around that person light, a happy experience, instead of, yeah, heavy going. It's lighter, isn't it If you've got somebody with a sense of humour.

Speaker 1: 15:07

Yeah, and I think that when you first start going out with someone, there can be often lots of very funny things happening. It can also be stressful, but it can be funny. Obviously it's funny at the beginning. There's a lot of funny things happening, but there's a lot of things that you're, like you know, looking to make each other other laugh, like almost on purpose. I think we have to go back to that like looking to get a laugh out of your partner. You would do that a lot, wouldn't you? To make sure, to make sure that you try and say something that's quite funny. Yes, to make the other person laugh, and that might sound contrived, but in the end that's what keeps most successful relationships going. Really humor.

Speaker 1: 15:48

Yeah, I agree with you, you can turn leaving the toilet seat up, which could get really on someone's nerve. You can turn it into a, into a humorous thing, can't you into a funny thing and then it won't get on your nerves anymore. If you think of it as funny, yeah, well, yeah, I mean, uh, I, it doesn't really bug me, so I can't explain that. In a hurry to get out of there, yeah, and I'm not really getting that joke, as long as you're enjoying to put the toilet seat down. Yeah, he was in a hurry.

Speaker 1: 16:27

Yeah, it's a man that leaves the toilet seat up. Mostly women don't do no, no, no, no, I mean, I don't know, you don't know about that? No, of course I know about that. It's not like I've come across. You know, I've arrived at this stage of my life and I've never noticed. This is what men do. This is one of the common pet peeves of couples. Right, okay, okay, I didn't realize that was one of the common pet peeves. Yeah, obviously it doesn't bother you that one leaves the slippers in the middle of the room or something. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, the dog gets them and bites them. Yeah, yeah, yeah, that could. That can happen if you've got a dog. Yeah, absolutely. Yeah, the the toothpaste thing. You know these kind of yeah, the toothpaste and things like that.

Speaker 1: 17:14

That's not funny, but I'm thinking it's funny now. It's not funny, I mean there's nothing, but I always think that when I see it, I mean it's quite morbid actually. But I think I'm glad, you know, I'm glad he's here with me and you know that's a sign of him being alive, because, because I'm quite like that, you know I don't. So I see it's a sign of life around me. Yeah, so I, it doesn't doesn't annoy me at all. I, I like it because I mean I love him and I want him to be around and leave and I want to see that because it means, oh, he's here with me and I don't care whether he covers it or not and I cover it.

Speaker 1: 17:59

But it's like one of those things that you know, yes, I know, just saying it sounds terrible, but I think if you sometimes, if you do believe that you're not eternal and you do think that it's supposed to be a light-hearted podcast, but if you believe that you're not eternal, then there's more time to laugh and enjoy life. Really, there is, there is, there's more like the most of it, don't you? What that's not going to annoy you, is it? If you're thinking the other extreme, the big picture is that, hey, you have somebody. You know why am I going to be annoyed about that? You can be annoyed if you want, but it doesn't not me personally, it doesn't affect me. I'm not saying that all of you out there that are finding that really terrible, yeah, but I think if you are, I don't mind. I think, if you're finding it terrible, I think you can. You know, you can also look at the humorous side of it and then maybe go inside yourself and think what do I do? Maybe you need more space or something. Yeah, what do I do that could annoy my partner. Well, yeah, millions of things. Yeah, because sometimes when you brush your hair, when you get fixated on that one thing and then you might like if I go into my bathroom and I look around, I mean most of the mess is mine around. Yeah, that's what I mean. That doesn't get on my nerves, because I just know I can tidy up when I want. Exactly, it's all right if we do it. Yeah, so if you think, if you think like that, you can also see that maybe the more humorous or playful side of it as well. Well, yeah, you don't have to go down my route, but yeah, definitely you can. You'll definitely see the play. I always remember this isn't that funny, but it's sweet.

Speaker 1: 19:38

I always remember my mother-in-law when we used to go to england with the kids when they were little. They used to touch the windows that she just cleaned and looking at the garden. And I always remember once she told me when when you leave, it's gonna make me cry, oh yeah, but when you leave, she said I always look at the wind, the fingerprints, oh god, okay. And she said and I don't wipe them off, I leave them because she's so sad that we'd left because we obviously we lived in italy, so we'd go and see them and stay with them. So she loved the fact that they put their little hands on the window. She would actually say I leave them there, I don't clean them off. Oh, yeah, she's no longer with us now. Okay, there, you go, there, you go, there you go.

Speaker 1: 20:25

But she enjoyed the children playing. Yeah, she left that. That was treasure for her, instead of thinking they're dirtying the windows. No, look, they're my little grandchildren and I'm gonna have their fingerprints on the window pane for for a long time after they've gone back to their home in Italy. She had that to treasure.

Speaker 1: 20:44

So maybe, in a kind of way, that's me like with the toothpaste, you know, thinking I've got, you know, I've got the person I love near me now, because one day, if I see that toothpaste perfectly covered, I think, well, that's, don't sweat, it's like don't sweat the small stuff. Well, yeah, in life, find it, find a more humorous way, look at the funny side of life. And or the more endearing side, yeah, and see, see that side. Yeah, and and and basically, yeah, the dust will always fall, like what my our mum used to say, isn't it? You know, don't, don't be so worried about certain things. Yeah, see, the funny side of life. That's easier to say than to do sometimes, so isn't it?

Speaker 1: 21:30

But I'm sure if you really think about it, you can, yeah, and if you can't, I mean even just it's been making an effort. If you just force a smile on yourself, you're going to start smiling and laughing sooner or later. So if you just keep that smile on your face, you will. It will turn into a giggle. Your physiology, your physiology, does affect your psychology. So, yes, so if you do have a smile, even if it's fake to start off with um, eventually it's going to affect how you're feeling inside. So that's pretty impressive, yeah, and you fake laughter and then afterwards you might really laugh.

Speaker 1: 22:09

Yeah, why do you think in those comedies they used to put that canned laughter on? Yeah, well, sometimes they still do, like the retro ones. Yeah, don't let them do that now. Well, I don't know, I think there's some TV programmes in Italy where they still have the fake laughter. No, that's not funny, no, but it kind of to stimulate, isn't it? I think we have to play more, you know, and have more fun in our lives, and because, in the end.

Speaker 1: 22:36

I think that's what really counts. You're going to remember those funny moments. That's when you're going to make the memory. You'll make the memory of that time when you had a good laugh, you know, and you'll remember that's. You might not remember other things, so it's important also, I think, and I think when you make someone laugh, especially if you're not that good at it, you feel really good as well. It makes you feel really happy. Yeah, yeah, it does make you feel good. No, it does make someone really laugh really long. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.

Speaker 1: 23:09

I remember once when I was really young and at university and we went to, I went to on a trip to Marseille with my right from Paris, because I was living in Paris with, um, my your roommate, yeah, roommate, yeah, yeah, and we were all at a restaurant and then they were talking about Star Trek and oh, yeah, and then they, they would say, yeah, beam me up, scotty, and I I'd never watched Star Trek or done anything like that. So I just said innocently, I said who's Scotty? And honestly they just went mad. They wet themselves practically from laughing. They found it. I mean even I don't think it's that funny, because because obviously you know, for me it wasn't a funny thing, but I mean, I still remember it. You were so happy that they laughed. Oh, my God, you know I got a laugh out of them. That was really nice. Yeah, who's Scotty?

Speaker 1: 24:01

Yeah, it's so nice to like make people laugh. I think it's a gift you can give them and to make yourself laugh as well. Look at the lighter side of it, yeah, brighter, and increment this playfulness in your relationship with yeah, play games. I mean play games or just sing a little song and have a little dance around the house and look foolish and feel foolish, but do it anyway. You know, just doing little things.

Speaker 1: 24:31

So you can also be very playful with the way you dress. You can be playful with that as well. Oh, yeah, that'll certainly convey a certain kind of um, yeah, that's, that's so true, artistic flair. Yes, and it'll make people feel well, you don't want to make people laugh, but you know well who cares. You know, as long as they're laughing with you, yeah, you know you don't have to, yeah, don't have to laugh at you. Well, unless you're doing it totally on purpose and you're going to be wearing a ridiculous hat or something, because then you're looking for that laugh. Yeah, you know, and that's, that's a different thing, isn't it? Anyway, let us know how you make people laugh.