Originally Posted by
Flip Flop Rider
kids don't need regimented exercise but they do need to be outdoors. Parents are reluctant to send them out un-monitored, and don't want to spend all of there time outside monitoring them
I see kids outside sometimes but they are usually monitored by a parent. Not saying they shouldn't be, but a time existed when kids were relatively un-monitored. My mom hates the outdoors but had no problem sending me out for the day
parents don't cook as much at home either, and throw in video games with amazing graphics to boot
lots of factors
this post is purely opinion and is not backed up by scientific data (to my knowledge)
All true.
I grew up being told to "go out and play, and be back before dinner." If I complained of boredom, I was told to find something to do or they would find if for me (which meant chores of course).
Where I went and what I did was up to me, so it usually entailed hopping on our bikes and riding somewhere. We had no money, so we collected bottles to get something to eat if we really wanted it. We made mistakes. We took some risks, but we survived and were all the wiser for it. I broke my arm. Got in a lot of scrapes. Was kicked out of a few stores. But the utter freedom of being able to do whatever we wanted was both liberating and a responsibility.
Nowadays, virtually every parent is afraid to leave their child to themselves, even in their own front yard, let alone riding all over the place, even if every child has a cellphone and can be reached or located on a moments notice. They are given rides virtually everywhere they want to go. My mother didn't even drive, so if I wanted to go somewhere, I had to find a way to do it (usually the bike). I was in Peru last year and it was the same. Children, while loved and cared for, are not coddled. There are 8 year old kids out in the fields, tending sheep.
I dunno what happened. Too many milk carton missing child posters? Is it really that much more dangerous to be out and about than it was when we were children? I rather doubt it. As parents, we did too much coddling. But less than most other parents, and both our children (as adults) have thanked us for not helicoptering (or lawnmowering) them.
I dunno whether it has anything to do with anything, but as an old fart I can say that it was more fun to be a kid then than I think it is now. It was probably a lot healthier too.