COVID-19’s possible upside: More children getting active outside
Click Here to Manage Email Alerts
When I was a kid growing up in the city, I played outside every day. My mother’s favorite phrase was “get some fresh air.”
It was a good way to keep me and my sisters out of her hair. Besides, there was not much to do in the apartment except homework and that wasn’t exciting, especially on a sunny day.
Some “games” we played were not smart, like roller skating up to a car stopped at a corner and grabbing the fender for a free ride as it zoomed off. However, two terrific games come to mind.
The first was called stick ball. This did not require any expensive equipment or body armor.
The bat was a broomstick with the broom cut off.
The ball was a pink great bouncer made by Spalding. Made of rubber, it was about the size of a tangerine.
The field was the street. Home plate and second base were pieces of cardboard. First base was a door handle of a car on the right side of the street, and third base was a car door handle on the left side.
The street was lined on both sides with parked cars. It was good the ball was rubber, as it occasionally would hit windshields. Each team had a pitcher and two or three fielders.
Stick ball required lots of running, especially as a fielder, because that pink ball would travel far down the street. If it landed under a car, you were just about guaranteed a home run.
Of course, because we were playing in the street, the game would be delayed every time a car came through. Fortunately, that wasn’t often.
The apartment I grew up in was across the street from a Catholic church. It was not unusual for one or two of the priests to play the game with us. A lasting memory for me is of a priest running the bases in his black cassock with rosary beads dangling from his belt.
I recall my mother pulling me from the stick ball game one Friday each month after school to go with her to church for the stations of the cross. I hated the smell of incense.
The second game was called box ball. This was played in teams of three or four players at the intersection of four street corners.
The ball was the same pink Spalding. The bases were the sewer grates at each corner.
The pitcher was required to throw the ball so it would bounce one time before the plate (the sewer grate). The batter would hit the ball with his fist, hence the name box ball. Again, no expensive special equipment was required.
Sometimes, the ball would go down the sewer. We didn’t have extra balls, so we would lift off the sewer grate, hold one of our friends by the ankles and lower him into the sewer to grab the ball. The ball would be wiped off and play would resume.
I don’t recall anyone ever getting sick.
I mention these two games because they kept me and my friends outside all day long. Importantly, they weren’t the only two games we played. Other games we just made up, but that’s not the point of this commentary. What is important is I don’t remember any of my friends being overweight. The exercise involved our arms, legs and heart.
We looked forward to playing outside. This is a far cry from sitting at home playing the latest electronic game or texting every friend asking what they are doing.
As the COVID-19 pandemic subsides in the U.S., I have noticed in the last couple of months more kids outside playing basketball, soccer and tennis and riding their bikes. The parks are loaded with people running or power walking, even more so than before COVID-19.
Could this be a sign that the younger generation realizes the thrill of outdoor activities, or is it just a post-COVID-19 release? Will they soon be back on their couches with their electronic devices, as fat cells accumulate in every part of their body, munching on a Big Mac — with 550 calories and 29 grams of fat — and fries?
I know I won’t see them playing stick ball or box ball, or on roller skates hanging on car fenders. However, maybe, just maybe, they will see and feel the adrenaline rush of playing outside on a sunny day with their friends, getting fresh air and great exercise.
I am optimistic. How about you?
Collapse
Read more about
Click Here to Manage Email Alerts