Just a Bit of Silliness, Really

On New Year’s Day Jason and I played a fun game with our family called Quelf. The game is described as “Insanity in a box!” It was outrageously fun and just plain silly. At one point I had to slow dance with my sister-in-law. We laughed so hard, switching between the “high school” slow dance (girl’s hands around the guy’s neck and the guy’s hands around the girl’s waist) versus the “classic” slow dance style. Another wacky thing I had to do was talk like a pirate for about fifteen minutes. Anyone who knows me well knows that my fake accents are way off.

Terrible, really.

If I had to make my living doing impersonations, I would starve. You may remember Escape Plan Challenge # 25 (G’Day Mate: Talk in a phony voice or accent to a complete stranger.) was very difficult for me.

Ayyyy, matey.! Arrr! Aye Aye!

That’s about as good as it got. My stab at the piratey tone soon turned into the likes of Cheech and Chong, as all of my attempted accents have a way of doing.

All of the silliness reminded me of the classic movie scene from the wonderfully childlike film, “Finding Neverland” with Johhny Depp and Kate Winslet. I love this movie! It’s the story of J.M. Barrie’s (the Scottish novelist and dramatist, portrayed by Johnny Depp) friendship with a family who inspired him to create Peter Pan.

Setting the scene… For a handful of reasons Peter, an 8-year-old boy, (who is befriended by Barrie) is a bit more serious and closed off than most kids his age, especially his brothers. After being exposed to Barrie’s unrelenting silliness and wild imagination for months, Peter finally musters up the courage to take a risk with silliness and invites Barrie to review his fantastical play.

Peter Llewelyn Davies: [as a preface to his play] This is just a bit of silliness, really.
J.M. Barrie: I should hope so. Go on.

These lines give me chills because it’s such a monumental turning point for Peter. He decided to put himself out there with this outward act of silliness and it was so warmly welcomed!

I think silliness comes with ease after one of two things has occurred: 1. You feel comfortable and safe with those around you and the environment. 2. Your life experience brings you to a point where you just don’t care what others think anymore.

There’s a quote I love, which I am probably butchering, but it goes something like this…

“When I was a kid I worried about what others thought about me. When I hit middle age I didn’t care anymore what others thought about me. Now that I’m older I realize that one one ever thought about me at all.”
–Author Unknown

I have to share this clip from the movie, featuring the power of your imagination in helping to facilitate fun and silliness. You’ll notice Peter has not yet made the step towards comfortable silliness. You’ll also notice Johnny Depp simply cannot get enough pirate roles. Enjoy, ye mateys!