Yesterday at the birthday/anniversary work bash a discussion popped up. Apparently new surveys have concluded that all but one state of the US has significant problems with obesity. The discussion moved to the problem of how now days more children are overweight and why that might be. Electronics in all forms seemed to be the conclussion of how we have come to this point. We allow our children to sit and listen to iPods, play video games, watch TV, etc. instead of getting outdoors and moving around.
Growing up I was lucky enough to live in a small neighborhood inhabited by at least a half dozen of my cousins or other relatives. The neighborhood was sandwiched between pastures of a dairy and a small wooded area, so our little rat pack of cousins were often outdoors exploring nature. We'd wade in the stream catching tadpoles, building small dams or playing games in the woods. When not in the woods or pastures we rode bikes, played hide and seek or flew kites. In other words, we moved around a LOT!
I wish my kids had had more of what I did. It was good to come home tired and dirty from climbing trees, playing tag or wading in the water. It's sad to realize that we don't live in a world where we can kick our kids outdoors and let them run wild for a few hours without having to worry about child predators or other harm.
