What happened to sandboxes? When I was a kid, my neighbor had a large sandbox and we played in the sand for years. Occasionally, we would start at 8 a.m. and quit when our moms called us in for dinner. We dug tunnels and built roads with our Tonka trucks. As we grew older, the sandbox became a war zone. We had an army of plastic warriors protected by tanks, troop carriers and planes. Of course, we built model planes, trucks, ships, etc. In our teens, loaded with M80s and cherry bombs, we had a blast blowing it all up.
Sandboxes were easy to build and inexpensive. We played outside; and, instead of having gigabytes of memory and computer-generated images, we used our own brains and creativity. What happened to sandboxes? What happened to playing outside? What happened to using our own creative minds?
Obviously, computer games have captured and taken our children hostage. They still play outside but their “outside” is inside a computer screen or television screen. Their parents try to limit their screen time and get them involved in outside activities. Limiting their screen time usually leads to a fight.
My parents never tried to limit my time in the sandbox. Quite the contrary, my mom would say, “Why don’t you go over to Harris’s house and play in the sandbox.” I gladly went out. I’ve got to admit, I often fought coming home at dinner time. Like all kids, I bargain for “just a few more minutes.”
I was pleased to see sandboxes are still sold and that Amazon has a large selection. Now, I just have to convince today’s parents that playing in the sand is preferable to playing with an iPad.
Did you have a sandbox? Do you have fond memories of playing in the sand? Do your children or grandchildren have sandboxes? If you didn’t have a sandbox, did you build sandcastles at the beach?
Here’s today joke:
A married couple is lying in bed.
The wife leans over and says, “I want you to say dirty things before we start”. So, the man starts to caress her neck and whispers to her. “Living room, Bathroom, Kitchen”.
