The Value of Unstructured Time
Creativity is the armor that protects us from boredom
When I was Growing Up
I wore a latchkey around my neck. At the end of the school day, the bus dropped me off to a house at the end of an empty driveway. The key around my neck unlocked the door to unsupervised freedom. Over the years, countless hours ticked by filled with activities of my choosing, never needing to ask for permission.
Those hours were mine and mine alone. They weren’t filled with coaches screaming to do better or glorified babysitting disguised as after-school activities. I’ll admit that I squandered most of those hours watching after-school specials and poorly written episodes of Godzilla and Ultra-Man (by the way, Ultra-Man is back … look it up), but I wasn’t complaining.
I also spent a ton of time outside. Wandering. Exploring. Adventuring. I even found a charred frame of a burned down house deep in the woods near my home. I visited that burnt home a lot and each time I did, I crafted a new layer to an imagined story about what happened to the home and to the people in it. It was a place where my imagination could take flight - perhaps it was that process that ignited (pardon the pun) the inner desire for me to tell stories.
What’s My Point?
The point is that I was not an overly scheduled kid. I had lots of down time. And that down time was actually an important part of my own self-discovery and independence development. Of course, it wasn’t without its own share of challenges and some getting into trouble or making some really stupid decisions, but that comes with the territory of being a kid, not because I had down-time. My down time sparked creativity and the ability to find my own interests. I never complained of being bored because the whole world was waiting for me to explore and discover it … and I had the freedom to do so. How could I be bored?
Too often, however, I see today’s kids being overly scheduled. Every minute of their day is planned. And that planning is done by someone else. They are told what to do, when to do it and for how long. I see kids in multiple sports whose seasons overlap and weekends are spent changing out of some gear to only put on other gear for the next activity. I watch kids travel on the weekends for sports, for dance, for clubs. I’m exhausted just thinking about it.
Don’t get me wrong, these things all have their place, but let’s be sure that we leave blank space for allowing creativity to blossom. Some of these kids are our future artists, engineers, writers, film makers, etc. - they need the time to nurture their creativity and allow their boredom to manifest into imagination. I, for one, want to see what they will create!
My Kid’s Experience
A few weeks ago, I took my oldest daughter to a local 4-H event. There were structured activities that she and the other kids enjoyed, but they enjoyed those activities as separate individuals.
As the activities came to a close and the structure of the day faded into the background, I watched something truly special happen. All the kids (ranging in age from 6 to 13) found unity with one another through creative and imaginative play. The pulled together a circle of chairs and played, of all things, President and Vice President - oh, you should have heard those stump speeches. That then turned into Duck, Duck, Goose, which then turned into something else completely that I cannot even describe, but it involved chasing and screaming and laughing. It was wonderful.
The bottom line is that the most laughter and fun occurred when the activities ended and the kids were permitted to use their imagination to protect them from boredom - and they did it on their own, like pros! No coach yelling at them to do better was needed for these kids to succeed.
Learning from Kids - Giving Back to Them
I am reminded on the regular that we can learn things from our kids, everyday. We just need to remain open to those lessons. For me, writing children’s books is like giving a gift back to them. I take what they teach me and I craft that into a story that is meaningful for them and others. It is humbling. It is a privilege. It is a joy to do this for them. And, like that boy so many years ago who wore the latchkey around his neck, my creativity needs quiet, unstructured down time.
My newest book, Jazmyne’s Big Emotions, releasing on October 1, is available for pre-order now. It pulls together a collection of strategies that kids have shown me to effectively manage their emotions. There is a moment in the story that so strongly resonated with my daughter because it reflected strategies they were also teaching in school. You should have seen how proud she was to demonstrate to me how successful she was with this technique. It also features a main character who is foster care - character representation that is sadly under-represented in children’s books.
Kids have much to say and share. We have a responsibility to listen and learn from them. The more space we give them, the more they’ll discover and bring back to us. Let’s not under-estimate the value of unstructured down time and the benefits it can bring to all of us.