Kids & Outdoor Play and Exercise

What were your and your childhood friends’ experiences with outdoor exercise and playful exploration?

Would I have had the daily happy, healthful outdoor adventures and exercise if my parents had been arrested for allowing me to play at the local NE Minneapolis Windom Park without adult supervision? Nope.

And, then I would not have enjoyed the lifetime health benefits, benefits physical, psychological, social, that came with being so physically active with all those other kids.

(Here’s a story today about being arrested for allowing one’s age nine child to play in the park without adult supervision http://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2014/07/mother_jailed_for_letting_her_daughter_play_unsupervised_in_a_park.html )

My memories are filled with walking, hiking and running, both alone and with many other children, far and wide throughout my neighborhood. Even when visiting various rural settings with my folks, I'd find new environs to explore.

I remember sandlot pick-up baseball, hiking through undeveloped urban forests’ trails to collect rocks and insects, running through fields after butterflies with my home-made net, even after sunset flashlight tag games during moonless nights.

From the time I was age five and walking to and from my neighborhood school with or without classmates, I was quite safe.  I recall a general awareness of rarely being altogether unattended either by other kids or adults who were walking, working or even driving nearby. I was quite safe, as were all those hundreds of kids with whom I played through my early years.

Sadly, something has changed in America since the 1950s that has resulted in so many kids not being nearly as naturally, happily and healthfully active out-of-doors as they once were.

What are we to think of the simultaneous message that kids ought to be more physically active, safe as ever in the out-of-doors while playing in their neighborhoods and parks, but they must always be attended by their parents or a guardian?

Wouldn’t it be a grand world where every child has healthy-fit, able-bodied, an always-ready-to-go outside-to-play parents?

 But that world will never be. I didn’t have that ready-to-go-play-outside partner in either of my parents while growing up. Did you?

Today I actively support the YMCA and love seeing all the well-supervised kids.

But, there will never be enough YMCAs and other similarly well placed and organized kids’ play programs with adult supervision.

Meantime…Best wishes, especially to all the kids.