For human beings, play is an im-portant survival skill. A quick game of dodgeball or something similar during the ten-minute break between classes releases the pent-up pressures and frustrations of the classroom, restoring kids' spirits and preparing them for the lessons and discipline of their next class.
The adult world lacks the school bells chiming out the end of class and the retreat to playground and hallway. Though the desire to play persists, many of us lack even the merest shadow of a playmate with whom to act on it.
When times are good and we have money in our pockets, we can flaunt our good taste and sense of style by shopping for nice things, whether alone or with a group of friends. When times are bad, women buy cute little knick-knacks and men play games (or vice versa). They don't spend much, but get to remain fashionable. Either way, you can have some fun or spend some quiet time alone. When by yourself, you can grind your teeth or wail along with a Caomaru stress ball with nobody the wiser.
How people play reflects their personalities and habits. As an introverted person who prefers quiet, my entertainment is limited to books, music, and plants that thrive on the balcony with little attention. My health regimen similarly centers around yoga and tai chi. In recent years, I've also been very fortunate to be able to sing once again with my university's choral club. When I think back, I never used to be especially "playful," but now the pressures of work compel me to grasp every opportunity to relax and have fun the way a drowning man clutches at a plank.
This issue's cover story on the "healing economy" looks at play and relaxation from the standpoint of industry. Many probably wonder whether this new economy represents just another buzzword foisted on us in this consumerist era, one following in the footsteps of the "experience," "LOHAS," "aesthetic," and "hand touch" economies. Like those others, it is nothing more than an eye-catching name designed to spur people to spend.
While this is certainly true, what can we do that doesn't require spending? Going to the library to read a book may not cost anything, but library patrons have certainly benefited from large investments in their educations. In the same way, while gardening isn't necessarily expensive, it does tend to involve forking over a good deal of money in "tuition" to nursery owners while you work on your green thumb.
Medical treatment businesses are definitely in fashion, and in these tough economic times are likely to become still more popular. While they clearly have the power to ease people's minds, understanding their deeper implications and putting them to the best use requires that they be objectively evaluated.
In his The Magic Power of Style, sociologist Liou Wei-gong talks about receiving a "tofu man" charm from a female university student and astutely observes:
"The cute life exists in the 'small world,' not the 'larger world.' The larger world seeks power and influence. The small world is about personal relationships. In the world of cute, 'getting close to people and having people get close to you' supplants 'controlling and being controlled' as the basis of human interactions."
But "playing cute" is no indication of low intelligence. In fact, the advocates of "cute culture" are generally the kids who excel in school. Jason Wu is a case in point. The designer, whose reputation has soared since catching the eye of US first lady Michelle Obama, has adored Barbie dolls since childhood, proving the power of cute.
This issue includes two other fascinating pieces-one on the promotion of financial "adoption" as a way to care for stray dogs and another on periodicals written and published by immigrant workers. Clearly, everyone these days is finding their own form of release. Keeping our spirits up requires that we learn to relax. If we can do so, perhaps we can manage all our work while also getting something out of our leisure, which would certainly be a good thing.
