Quotes:
“You can discover more about a person in an hour of play than in a year of conversation.”
~ Plato
“Men do not quit playing because they grow old; they grow old because they quit playing.”
~ Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr.
"You're never too old to do goofy stuff."
~From the television show Leave it to Beaver, spoken by the character Ward Cleaver
"So, like a forgotten fire, a childhood can always flare up again within us."
~Gaston Bachelard
These quotes make me think about my childhood. It is true that you learn more about a person after playing with them for only an hour than you do in a year. People tend to show their true colors when they are playing because their mind is not on impressing that person. I can remember playing with kids and knowing that I do not want to be friends with them after that day. I can remember my grandfather telling me that you are never too old to play. The last two quotes brought that memory back to me. Before my grandfather got sick he made me promise that I would never grow up too much, just enough to take care of business, as he would say. Even in his 60's he was never too old to do goofy stuff, and I know that I am not either.
Pictures:
The metal slide: absolutely loved playing on these when I was a kid. However, if they were hot you definitely would burn your legs, and if there was a break in the metal you might pinch your legs.
Dome climbers: Oh the days!!!! I miss some of the things we had to play on. Kids today are missing out.
The famous merry go round. I miss those the most.
My days as a child were spent outdoors. My parents felt like it was a crime to stay inside all the time. They believed that we needed a certain amount of fresh air everyday. So we would go to the park or school playgrounds with all of the neighborhood kids and spend the day playing. We were only allowed no more than 2 hours of television unless it was raining or too cold to play outside. Having play time was very important in my family. First, my sisters and I were able to run our energy out so we would go to bed at a decent time. Also, our parents were able to get things done because we were not in their hair all the time. Babysitters and daycares were not something that was even thought of when I was a child. My parents believed that physical activity was the best way for us to stay healthy. My grandfather always told us that vitamin D is healthy for us, and we knew what that meant, and that was it's time to go play outside.
Today kids rely on technology too much. Most do not even know what it is like to spend several hours outside entertaining themselves or their friends. It is sad what we have come to as a society. My fiance and I are going to be starting our own family soon and I am going to encourage them to play outside, and soak up the fresh air. I don't want them to stay inside glued to the television all day. I want them to explore, learn, and experience new things.
