“My
Connections to Play”
At the
age of 4 or 5 years old, my favorite toy was a 3 foot tall baby
doll. My mother bought me extra clothes and shoes for my doll and I
really enjoyed taking care of her. I can remember naming her Sally Sue; I
think I still remember her name because in my young mind she was my baby.
Whenever we would go to town, I would always take Sally Sue along with
me and even make sure her seat belt was attached. Sally Sue had long,
shiny, black hair, which I would brush into a pony tail. This is the
only doll I can remember having, because she lasted a couple of years.
Along with the doll, I would also receive puzzles from my mother. I would
sit there working until the right pieces fit and I can remember the puzzles
being in the form of a Disney character. Sometimes she would sit
next to me and motivate me by saying, “you can do it” “that’s my girl.”
Whenever
I would go outside to play, my favorite game would be pretending to be an adult
and having my own home. I can remember my friends and I building a
'house' using cardboard boxes. We would pretend cooking, sewing, and
going to work; there were many memories in that house. To this day,
whenever my friends and I are together, we talk about the times we shared and
the fun we had in our cardboard house. As I matured and became wiser, I would
go places with my best friend and her mother and sometimes spend the weekend
with her on their farm. We would feed the animals: corn hulls to the
cows and grain to the chickens. My favorite past time was riding with the
other kids in a wagon being pulled by a tractor. I once visited when it
had just snowed and after making a snowman and making snow angles, we kids all
had a snow ball fight. It was a cold, beautiful day.
I believe
that if children today could experience just a little of what I did as a child,
such as playing outside, experiencing new things, and most importantly having
adults in my life who motivated me to do better, they would be affected in a
positive way. Today, children want expensive things, like Iphones,
x-boxes, expensive sneakers and clothes. Of course I wanted nicer things
as a young child, but I didn't get them and life went on. It seems as
though it is hard for children to find pleasure in simple things and I don't
think it's because parents have full time job, which causes them to sacrifice
time raising their children. Both my parents worked full time, but they set
rules for us to follow and there were consequences if we disobeyed them.
We played games, talked, and had chores to do; my parents made sure we
connected. It is ironic and sad that while parents work long hours to
provide the best for their families, they are losing that vital connection with
their children. In school, you will find children going out to
play/exercise, as well as having the time set aside to study. Children
need to spend more time developing social skills in face-to-face interactions,
instead of spending all-nighters playing games or putting their personal
information on the computer. But, until the adult in the household set
consistent guidelines, the child will do what he or she wants to and that is
usually not in their best interest.
Children make you want to start life over. ~Muhammad
Ali
