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One of the purest things you can witness is the unabashed joy of a child. Their rose-colored glasses are still intact, allowing them to move through the world with wonder, imagination, and a freedom that makes joy look effortless. For many children, happiness lives in the simple opportunity to play. Whether sprinting through the park or sitting on the floor with their favorite toys, playtime brings immense delight. Beyond the surface smiles, it also nurtures creativity, invites them to build new worlds, forge new friendships, and develop skills that can serve them well into the future. There are greater benefits than we realize.  

But as we grow older, our relationship with play often changes, replaced by mounting responsibilities that can feel like work, work, and more work. Add the unique pressures that come with navigating the world as a Black mother, and making room for play can begin to feel out of reach. 

The issue is that the need for play doesn’t dissipate once we become adults, nor do those great benefits. Research shows that for adults, play is critical for our well-being, problem-solving abilities, and can even facilitate healing. Additionally, play can aid in reducing stress, improving cognitive function, and building social bonds. 

A 2025 study conducted an hour-long structured play program with 15 teachers and parents aged 28-58 to see the impact it would have on their well-being. It found that participants experienced more pleasurable emotions and fewer negative emotions, and that the play had a positive impact on their vitality and state of mindfulness. 

To help reframe how we all engage with play, the LEGO Group launched its “Keep Playing, See What Happens” campaign. It’s an initiative rooted in the idea that play isn’t just for children, but a powerful tool adults can use to reconnect with creativity, relieve stress, and strengthen family relationships. The possibilities are endless when we play. 

While some things in life are beyond our control, we do have autonomy over our joy, which can be expressed through recreation. Sometimes, it’s the last resource we reach for to noreferrer noopener”Motherhood/a provides a unique opportunity to reconnect with play individually and alongside your kids. However, it takes intentionality and unlearning to get back to carefree frolicking and unscripted dilly-dallying.  /ph2 class=”wp-block-heading” id=”h-making-room-for-play-without-pressure-nbsp”Making Room for Play Without Pressure /h2pSince it’s an established fact that play benefits both children and adults, parenthood can provide the perfect opportunity for both to engage in recreation. However, the demands of everyday life can make play feel like another chore. Even if you do successfully carve out time to get on the floor and push around trains with your mini, you may find that you struggle to be present.  /ppFor a href=”https://www.essence.com/awards-events/red-carpet/black-women-hollywood/essence-black-women-in-hollywood-2026-honorees/” target=”_blank” rel=”noreferrer noopener”Black women/a, in particular, making room for play can be taxing because of the external pressures. That pressure may look like trying to reach the pinnacle of your career in a world that asks twice as much of you, while raising well-rounded kids prepared for similar challenges.  /pp“Sometimes I’m just really tired, and I have to find the energy,” says Ashley Anderson Carter, an assistant principal in New Jersey and mother of two.  /ppCarter admits that trying to balance her professional aspirations and motherhood sometimes interferes with her ability to play as a Black woman. She has learned to lean on her support system to make it a priority. One way to do this is to create a weekly schedule that she sends to her husband and teenage son via a group chat. She pencils solo quality time into the schedule, so it serves as a virtual Do-Not-Disturb sign.  /pp“Sometimes I don’t put exactly what I’m going to do, I just put my name. So it’s however I choose to show up for myself,” Carter explains. /ppIn addition to carving out time for play, being intentional about it can look like re-learning spontaneity, which is underpinned by finding joy in the present. Unscripted, self-directed delight is something we sometimes lose as adults, but can relearn through our kids and by practicing presence.  /pp“Play is spontaneous,” Carter says. “I would say it’s not always planned out. Play is what you make it. Play is finding joy in the moments, truly being present.” /ppThis philosophy aligns with the “Keep Playing, See What Happens” campaign’s core message, which is that play is less about what you do and more about how present you allow yourself to be in the moment.  /ppTo this point, Carter often finds herself “playing without noticing,” especially when listening to audiobooks.  /pp“To me, that’s play because I’m listening to a book and I’m sometimes cracking up laughing. That’s joy to me,” she adds.    /ppAt times, play without pressure is about finding a shared interest with your kids and integrating that interest into the daily routine. That eliminates the stress that can come with trying to squeeze another hour out of a full day to connect with your children. It also allows you to conserve your energy and be present in your chosen play.  /ppOluwadamilola Folorunsho, an entrepreneur and mother of three in Houston, Texas, has mastered this art. Dance parties courtesy of the Alexa app have become a daily ritual in her household.  /pp“I do not engage in play in the traditional way,” she says. “We do lots of silly dancing. We start our day off with a dance party. Our alarm is a full-on playlist, and it just starts the day with joy.” /p div class=”wp-block-image size-full”picturesource srcset=”https://media.essence.com/vxcjywbwpa/uploads/2026/04/GettyImages-835746704.jpg 1x, https://media.essence.com/vxcjywbwpa/uploads/2026/04/GettyImages-835746704.jpg 2x” media=”(min-width: 16x9px)”source srcset=”https://media.essence.com/vxcjywbwpa/uploads/2026/04/GettyImages-835746704.jpg 1x, https://media.essence.com/vxcjywbwpa/uploads/2026/04/GettyImages-835746704.jpg 2x” media=”(min-width: 3x1px)”source srcset=”https://media.essence.com/vxcjywbwpa/uploads/2026/04/GettyImages-835746704.jpg 1x, https://media.essence.com/vxcjywbwpa/uploads/2026/04/GettyImages-835746704.jpg 2x” media=”(min-width: 3x4px)”source srcset=”https://media.essence.com/vxcjywbwpa/uploads/2026/04/GettyImages-835746704.jpg 1x, https://media.essence.com/vxcjywbwpa/uploads/2026/04/GettyImages-835746704.jpg 2x” media=”(min-width: 4x3px)”source srcset=”https://media.essence.com/vxcjywbwpa/uploads/2026/04/GettyImages-835746704.jpg 1x, https://media.essence.com/vxcjywbwpa/uploads/2026/04/GettyImages-835746704.jpg 2x” media=”(min-width: 1x1px)”source srcset=”https://media.essence.com/vxcjywbwpa/uploads/2026/04/GettyImages-835746704.jpg 1x, https://media.essence.com/vxcjywbwpa/uploads/2026/04/GettyImages-835746704.jpg 2x” media=”(min-width: 3x2px)”source srcset=”https://media.essence.com/vxcjywbwpa/uploads/2026/04/GettyImages-835746704.jpg 1x, https://media.essence.com/vxcjywbwpa/uploads/2026/04/GettyImages-835746704.jpg 2x” media=”(min-width: 2x3px)”source srcset=”https://media.essence.com/vxcjywbwpa/uploads/2026/04/GettyImages-835746704.jpg 1x, https://media.essence.com/vxcjywbwpa/uploads/2026/04/GettyImages-835746704.jpg 2x” media=”(min-width: 136x91px)”source srcset=”https://media.essence.com/vxcjywbwpa/uploads/2026/04/GettyImages-835746704.jpg 1x, https://media.essence.com/vxcjywbwpa/uploads/2026/04/GettyImages-835746704.jpg 2x” media=”(min-width: nonepx)”source srcset=”https://media.essence.com/vxcjywbwpa/uploads/2026/04/GettyImages-835746704.jpg?width=800 1x, https://media.essence.com/vxcjywbwpa/uploads/2026/04/GettyImages-835746704.jpg?width=800 2x” media=”(min-width: 1440px)”source srcset=”https://media.essence.com/vxcjywbwpa/uploads/2026/04/GettyImages-835746704.jpg?width=800 1x, https://media.essence.com/vxcjywbwpa/uploads/2026/04/GettyImages-835746704.jpg?width=800 2x” media=”(min-width: 1280px)”source srcset=”https://media.essence.com/vxcjywbwpa/uploads/2026/04/GettyImages-835746704.jpg?width=800 1x, https://media.essence.com/vxcjywbwpa/uploads/2026/04/GettyImages-835746704.jpg?width=800 2x” media=”(min-width: 1028px)”source srcset=”https://media.essence.com/vxcjywbwpa/uploads/2026/04/GettyImages-835746704.jpg?width=800 1x, https://media.essence.com/vxcjywbwpa/uploads/2026/04/GettyImages-835746704.jpg?width=800 2x” media=”(min-width: 768px)”source srcset=”https://media.essence.com/vxcjywbwpa/uploads/2026/04/GettyImages-835746704.jpg?width=400 1x, https://media.essence.com/vxcjywbwpa/uploads/2026/04/GettyImages-835746704.jpg?width=400 2x” media=”(min-width: 0px)”img decoding=”async” src=”https://media.essence.com/vxcjywbwpa/uploads/2026/04/GettyImages-835746704.jpg” alt=”When We Play: How Black Mothers Are Reclaiming Their Imagination” width=”400″ height=”266″ //picturefigcaptionMother and daughter playing hide and seek/figcaption/div h2 class=”wp-block-heading” id=”h-play-in-all-its-power-and-possibility-nbsp”Play in All Its Power and Possibility /h2pWhat is play anyway? Ultimately, whatever you want it to be. This expansive definition is central to the LEGO Group’s approach—embracing everything from creative building to everyday joy as valuable forms of play.  /ppWith that in mind, it can be anything from leisure activities to structured ones, as long as it’s internally motivated and ends in joy. Adult play and child play often intersect, whether through arts and crafts, running wild in nature, or playing with toys. As a matter of fact, people are swapping out adulting for emkidulting/em nowadays. The latter, which consists of adults playing with toys, has become a booming market, driving a href=”https://nypost.com/2025/03/30/life rel=”noreferrer noopener”>billions in annual sales. Think investments in LEGO® bricks or collectible items like Star Wars figures, Labubu plush toys, or all things Pokémon. The point is, there are many ways to appease your inner child and access play both solo and with your kids.  

For Folorunsho, play was something intrinsic to her as a child born in Nigeria. She described herself as “a kid who would walk around the block because I wanted to see if the [other] kids would come out to play.” Climbing up mango trees, racing, and role-playing were her default, but that playful nature shifted after moving to New Orleans at the age of 13. She experienced a culture shock along with hardship familiar to many Black migrants who move to the U.S. and have to start over.  

Becoming a kindergarten teacher and mother helped Folorunsho eventually find her way back to play. 

“Our lives were just never-ending play, days of play. It was from the park, back home. We were drawing, we were being silly, and we were role-playing. I had everything you could think of,” she recalls.  

Now that her kids are older, their play has evolved into walks, being silly together at home, reading books, and movie nights. Folorunsho also says their play is rooted in mental health and other methods that are different from the recreation she enjoyed as a child.   

“Any extra space that I have that’s not occupied with parenting or working, I really am reading, I’m resting,” she says. 

Intergenerational Play and Legacy 

Play can be intergenerational and a way for families to create greater intimacy. For Richardson, LEGO play is an intergenerational hobby. Her 8-year-old son and his grandmother “love” LEGO bricks, she says.   

“That is a new hobby that they’ve gotten into probably over the last maybe 3 or 4 years,” says Richardson. “He goes with her now in the summer since we live in different states, and they always have a LEGO set to build.” 

That intergenerational recreation is a great thing to see, because our first interactions with play as kids, and how we play, can be influenced by the guardrails put in place by our parents and caregivers. Richardson says there were limitations to how she played growing up in a Black, Christian household, but she’s changing the narrative for her kids. 

“Certain types of play[were] discouraged. For me, it’s about breaking those things down when it comes to my children and allowing them to be a little freer, a lot more inquisitive and explorative than I was back then,” she says. “Things like that to me are the hardest because there’s always this little voice that’s like, ‘Come on now. You know we don’t do that.’” 

Understanding the value of play as both a parent and educator, it has become a staple in Carter’s household, too. She plays Disney matching games, dolls in the bathtub, and builds LEGO creations with her kids. During these play sessions, they get to connect with one another, reinforcing the community-building element of play.  

“I feel like I get to know them more by playing with them, their likes and dislikes,” Carter says. She also feels these moments offer an opportunity to equip her kids with life skills such as persistence, determination, and self-commitment. These are indelible life lessons that we can all learn from play.   

TOPICS:  Black Women wellness

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