Just for Fun

In an old album somewhere around the house is a photo of our two year old twins and their cousin riding this merry go round at a children's amusement park. We walked by it this past weekend and I wondered what happened to the last twenty years or so. Play comes naturally to a child as they explore their world with all of their senses. There is an interesting post up at Rambling Woods about "nature deficit disorder" in children. Children are given less freedom and time to explore and connect with nature in our busy world and pay a price for it in their mental and physical health.

I like watching children in parks and on trails. The little girl in pink was trying to get the attention of the white goose on the river. (an escaped domestic goose). She was not afraid of the large Canada Geese crowding her to see if she had any food for them. Her enthusiasm was fun to watch as the white goose finally approached her.

The family above was also out enjoying the beautiful fall day together. The girl was wearing a dress with bright autumn colours and it was obvious she loved her outfit as she twirled and fussed with the satin skirt. Perhaps she was a princess for a day or a heroine in some story book. She stopped frequently to pick up acorns and look for pretty leaves.

Who says only children have fun? Here are a group of my patients today at the hospital playing baseball on the Nintendo Wii video game console. The man in the brown shirt is the batter and the lady to his right is the pitcher. Another patient was quick to share that he had been a good baseball player in his youth as he tried out the hand-held pointing device. The Wii has become hugely popular and is being integrated into some physical therapy programs as a fun way to work on balance and coordination. Young adults in our family love to get together to play Guitar Hero and Rock Band. And I believe Sandland Brother, who is only a wee bit younger than me, has a Wii with the fitness module. But that's OK...

We all need to do something... just for fun!