Loving Fun, and leaving

We strike a silly pose, then we hug, and laugh, hard. And then we go to lunch. And so concludes our Weekend of Loving Fun at the always remarkable Esalen Institute. It was, as usual, amazing.

We played the usual melange of pointless games. I'd say that among the very favorites were Prui and People Pass and probably J'Accuse. Saturday night we stayed in the lodge for some board games. Favorites were Curses and Thepollgame.

It wasn't a success for everyone. Three out of our 14 didn't attend most of the sessions. The "freedom to quit" is an option that is central to the workshop - people should only be playing because they choose to play.

I quote from one of the participants: "...for the few who don't play, there are all of us who do and who get so much from the playing and the connecting. The pace was gentle and easy. I usually go to workshops where the work is hard and deep and it is all about learning through pain, so often. It was lovely, really just what I was hoping for, to remember and experience learning that happens in a loving and laughing way."