eclecticism

Something I’ve had a minor beef with for years now (as some of my old friends will be able to attest to, as this is a soapbox I’ve climbed onto from time to time) is how depressingly “safe” most of today’s playgrounds are. There are any number of reasons why this is so*, but the end result has been a constant and (to me) somewhat depressing “dumbing down” of playgrounds over the years. Any piece of equipment that could conceivably cause an injury more serious than a minor bruise has been torn out and replaced with rounded plastic contraptions that, while probably “safer”…are also boring.

(Be warned: gross generalizations follow. I know that there are specific instances that run counter to the general theme of my rant — and I consider them exceptions that prove the rule.)

Teeter totters? Long gone. Those great old merry-go-rounds that you’d get the older kids or parents to spin faster and faster until the smaller kids started flying off? Also a thing of the past. Heck, even today’s slides are mere stunted shadows of their former selves.

I was thrilled, then, to run across the Pinehurst Playfield this evening while Prairie and I were on a walk. We’d turned down a street we hadn’t walked down before, just a couple blocks away from our apartment, and heard kids playing. Once we got close enough to tell that there was a Little League game going on, we turned in to take a closer look at the park.

Then we saw the playground…and I couldn’t resist.

A jungle gym with lots of climbing bits, ropes, and various ways to clamber around on (and fall off of) it, including a marvelous slide with no rails that tips to one side. A…spinny thing…that had me so dizzy I could barely stand up. It was marvelous!

So, I spent some time being about seven years old or so, while Prairie giggled and did her best to get some shots of me being a kid (I think she did a pretty good job, too).

Hooray for dangerous playground equipment! * Most of these reasons seem to boil down to parents who are so inept that, on the rare occasions that they unplug their children from the electronic babysitter of television or video games and actually send them outside, if said children should get the odd bruise or scrape, the reaction is to immediately sue the school or playground where the injury occurred instead of letting the kid figure out that what the did might have been a little bit stupid, and if they don’t want to get hurt again, they won’t try that particular trick again.

I’ve long been of the opinion that all this coddling of today’s kids is doing little to no good. Falling down and hurting yourself is a great way to learn not to do whatever it is you just did, and if you never give a kid the chance to do just that, they’ll never figure out what their limits are. Plus, kids can be remarkably resilient — most of the time I see them take a tumble, the first thing they do is look around to see if anyone noticed. If they spot a parent hovering, then the waterworks get turned on…but if nobody noticed, then most of the time, they’ll just pick up and keep going. Kids know when they’ve got a good thing going.

Of course, please bear in mind that I say all of the above without actually having any kids of my own. I’ve babysat, I’ve helped take care of kids of various ages, and I’ve got a nephew…but I’m no parent. Any of this rambling can and probably should be taken with a (large) grain of salt.

“Opportunities (Let’s Make Lots of Money)” by Pet Shop Boys from the album Discography (1986, 3:37).

[See also: Boy in the Pool | Dad’s on Flickr | Pre-Seattle Days | Stating the obvious | 2005 Fremont Solstice Parade ]

« NyQuil Jello? | Hairy Tulips »