Boys Should Be Boys!

I am sure it comes as no surprise, at least to those of you who have read many of my past blogs, when I say, "Boys should be boys"! In fact, I will go a step further, "Children should be allowed to be children".

It also will not surprise those who know me when I clarify that to mean - children should be allowed to run and play and scream and yell and have loads of wild and crazy fun - within the boundaries of safety and courtesy.

The sad thing is, I think we've grown so accustomed to seeing our children (and others) playing quietly with their gameboys, sitting at their school desks, watching their movies, or whatever "quiet and controlled" activities they are currently pursuing we think this is normal.

BUT, think about it. What do we want these children to be when they grow up. Overweight? Under motivated? Non communicative? Lacking drive? Passion? Imagination?

Certainly not! And, yet, isn't that the world we are consigning them to? Granted there are places for movies, school desks, and, yes, maybe even gameboys, however, I truly believe this should be the rarity, not the norm - especially among our young children. Yet, when I hear someone call a normal, active, inquisitive young child "overactive" or even "ADHD" it makes my hair stand on end. Granted, I believe children need to exercise self-control. As parents we are responsible to teach our children self-control, courtesy, kindness, and concern for others. But, this does not remove or reduce their need for pure and natural imaginative play. Nor should it. The two are not polar opposites!

That means there is a place to be loud. There is a place to run, jump, skip, climb, yell. There is a place for mock sword fights, pretend gun battles, and even imaginary wild horse ropings! Our children NEED this kind of play. It feeds their imaginations, strengthens their bodies, relieves their stress (yes, our children feel stress, too) and opens their minds.

After all, if we want our boys equipped to fight real world battles, they need to win a few imaginary ones in the great outdoors. If we want our girls to stand strong in a world looking to exploit them, they need to have faced a few child-sized challenges in the world outside their doors.

The focus is not to 'be seen but not heard'. I thought we'd cleared that up in our parent's day. Apparently not. It is back wearing a politically correct face - and more dangerous than ever. Childhood is about playing hard - getting muddy - climbing trees - chasing squirrels or rabbits or the dog - winning imaginary battles! It is about being a child!

Of course, in my mind there is NO better place to be a child (or adult, for that matter) than surrounded by the pure nature and fresh air here at Elk Lake. So, I have yet another reason to be glad that for this time in life I have the privilege of being the

Lady of the Lake