The Opposite of Play

The opposite of play is not work…it’s depression. –Stuart Brown

What’s the opposite of play? Many of us would responsively say, “work.” But that’s not the case. The opposite of play is not work, but depression.

To play—to be able to do something for the enjoyment of it, and not just when there’s a practical purpose—is an integral part of being human. So to remove that element of life, for whatever reason, only impoverishes our experience.

This doesn’t mean there’s not a serious aspect to life—there is—but to forget to play along the way is a mistake. And if we’ve neglected it for a while, engaging in a little play can do wonders—not only for our mood, but also on our perspective on the rest of life.