Permission to Play — Why Creativity Isn’t Just for the Young

“You can’t use up creativity. The more you use, the more you have.”
— Maya Angelou

Somewhere along the way, many of us began to believe the lie that creativity has an expiration date. That “play” is for children, and once we cross into adulthood—especially midlife—it’s time to get serious, be productive, and leave the paint, the poetry, and the playful spirit behind.

But the truth is: creativity is not a phase. It’s a lifelong gift. And we don’t outgrow it—we only forget to use it.

When I was a little girl, my grandmother had a back porch with a wooden swing, peeling paint, and endless magic. To anyone else, it was just a porch. But to me, it was a castle, a rocket ship, a stage for my one-woman shows. And my grandma—my biggest fan—was always right there, cheering me on.

She never told me to “settle down” or “be realistic.” Instead, she handed me scraps of fabric and called them royal gowns. She gave me a wooden spoon to use as a microphone. She listened with real interest when I made up stories about imaginary lands and brave queens.

That porch wasn’t just the place I played—it was the place I belonged as a fully creative being. And it was there that I learned what Maya Angelou so beautifully said: the more you use your creativity, the more it grows.

Midlife Is the Perfect Time to Reclaim Your Creative Spark

Now, decades later, I see so many of us—especially women over 40—feeling disconnected from that creative, curious, playful part of ourselves. Life has asked a lot of us. Careers. Families. Expectations. And often, we’ve traded imagination for responsibility.

But I believe that this season of life is the perfect time to rediscover your creativity—not as a hobby or luxury, but as a powerful form of self-expression and self-care.

You don’t need to be a professional artist or start a business to be creative. Creativity shows up in how you decorate your space, how you cook a new meal, how you solve a problem, how you dress, how you dream. It’s the part of you that colors outside the lines just because it feels good.

Give Yourself Permission to Play

If you’ve been waiting for a sign to reconnect with that imaginative girl on the porch—the one who made up plays and wore “gowns” made of curtains—this is it.

Pull out that journal. Dance in your living room. Sing off-key. Take a class. Rearrange your space. Tell a story. Make a mess.

Because creativity isn’t just for the young. It’s for the alive.

And you, are very much alive.

You can’t use up creativity. The more you use, the more you have.

So what’s one small creative thing you can do today, just for fun? I’d love to hear.