Playing Safe

I somehow Googled my way to this discussion, called "Safety at All Costs," in response to a blog article that contained this observation:

"Children learn to cope with the world through outdoor activities, writes a British educator. But adult fears are restricting children's ability to explore the world. And they're not any safer as a result."

and I was, well, delighted, positively, absolutely, actually. With organizations like The American Association for the Child's Right to Play struggling to keep schools from closing down their recess yards because of liability concerns, it is genuinely soul-restoring to find so many people recognizing and affirming that the need to play freely actually transcends the need to play safely.

Here's a sample - one of many fun, funny and often provocative contributions from readers. This one's from Arty:

"I lived by a lake when I was growing up. Playing on thin ice and swimming to the opposite side were just a couple of the water-based activities my parents gave up lecturing me about. I rode my bike without any brakes all one summer and had an unhealthy attraction for bridges, train tracks, powerlines and anything that could be weaponized. We always had a pack of smokes hidden in our tree-fort too (just in case we escaped accidental death). Now my daughter complains because I make her wear hockey pads when she plays video games.... if she only knew what she was putting me through."