Did your mom ever tell you to Go outside and play? Mine did. Every day. Were you at a loss for what to do out there? Not me. I loved being outdoors.
I loved to climb my neighbors sycamore tree, ride my bike, play fetch with the dog and there were always lots of kids in the neighborhood to play some game or other. Big kids and little kids played together. It did not matter what school or church or synagogue we went to or NOT. What mattered was that we were all within earshot of someones parents and we played in each others yard for different reasons.
The slate patio in my yard was better for jump rope than the grassy slope of Patty’s yard. Eddies driveway was slick black pavement so it was great for skating and handball. Sometimes we collected lightning bugs in jars from everyone’s yard and then took the glass jars into a big tent in our yard. We would go off on some wild imaginary adventure in the dark using our bug lights until someone was called home
Circus. We created circus. Our pets reluctantly joined in this charade with silly costumes. Eddie always had some new magic tricks to WOW us with. Kathy and I took turns being ringmaster. It was as much fun getting it all together as it was to actually perform before our appreciative audience full of grandmothers, some who did not even speak the same language as the others.
Somehow refreshments always appeared on the table for all to share. Lemonade or cookies. Our parents kept us home all through the summer and after school. We spent most of our time outdoors. Rarely did we even go inside another person’s house but we had a lifetime of fun in our yards.
We think we invented the adventure game called “Scout”. It was our specialty. We had to gather all sorts of outdoor gear like canteens, flashlights, sunglasses. Once I got in trouble for using my Dad’s Leupold binoculars in the game instead of Eddie’s plastic ones. Mom explained they were real binoculars and cost a lot so they were off limits. Today I use them for birdwatching and no little kids will play with mine!
Where did the fun in our backyards go? We learned how to get along, we did not tolerate fighting. Today fights are common in school. Neighborhoods are empty and quiet and kids play alone indoors with video games. They eat junk food unsupervised and get fatter.
We might all be healthier and have more wholesome neighborhoods if we spend more time outdoors. Instead, we protect our kids and keep everyone in safe and supervised group activities. So when we get together as families it is an awkward time and everyone retreats to their own space and does their own electronic thing. Lets create some healthy outdoor fun with our kids today.
Related posts:
