Children Detach From Natural World As They Explore The Virtual One

San Fransisco Chronicle:  Yosemite may be nice and all, but Tommy Nguyen of San Francisco would much prefer spending his day in front of a new video game or strolling around the mall with his buddies.

What, after all, is a 15-year-old supposed to do in what John Muir called “the grandest of all special temples of nature” without cell phone service?

“I’d rather be at the mall because you can enjoy yourself walking around looking at stuff as opposed to the woods,” Nguyen said from the comfort of the Westfield San Francisco Centre mall.

In Yosemite and other parks, he said, furrowing his brow to emphasize the absurdly lopsided comparison, “the only thing you look at is the trees, grass and sky.”  The notion of going on a hike, camping, fishing or backpacking is foreign to a growing number of young people in cities and suburbs around the nation, according to several polls and studies.  CONTINUED

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What I find most tragic about this is I see no adults look for the right person to blame.  In the mirror.

Every cause factor listed in the article, from kids playing too many computer games to neighbors drafting oppressive covenants, is entirely within the control of supposedly rational and educated parents.  I mean, what's this cr@p?

Kim Strub, a 46-year-old Mill Valley mother of 13- and 16-year-old girls, said kids these days just don’t have the time to get out in nature with all the pressure to get good grades and be accepted into a prestigious college.

Then you make time for them.  Period.  No amount of activities will guarantee entrance into a "prestigious" college, but too many activities will certainly diminish long-term family memories.  I can't imagine growing up without the smells of pine, campfires and Off spray, along with the occasional skunk.  Bugs?  Great protein source.  Wildlife?  How about my daughter hand feeding a wild fox?  (Now someone's going to dog me out over feeding the bears).

The Hummingbird and I place limits on our minions' television and video game time.  They don't have, nor do they need, cellphones. If they want an extracurricular activity, they can pick two:  as long as the activities don't interfere with their regular schoolwork, which will serve them far better in life than some ridiculous ballet lesson. 

We regularly go on family walks, go to the lake to feed pigeons and squirrels, and trek up into the mountains for longer excursions.  And I'm damn proud to say the mouse's rock, acorn and leaf collection is greater than the combined 'tween ringtone inventory within a 5-mile radius of our roost.

I'm sorry, but this kind of stuff just makes me sick; especially when it's our fault.

Of course, now that most of California's burned to the ground, maybe covenants won't be such a problem.

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Comments

[carly]

But if the adults don't like camping etc. I don't see any reason for them to push their kids to do those things. Which is not to say parents shouldn't insist that their kids do SOMETHING that isn't shopping or computer-based.... I know lots of great parents who expose their kids to things they themselves love--art, music, sports, etc--who wouldn't even think about communing with nature in the ways you describe.

Chacun à son goût, non?

[The Furious Pigeon]

Note to readers: I'm temporarily leaving up the above spam comment (no, it's not Carly's) in order to maintain evidence. If I get spammed by the same site again it'll be nailed by their service provider.

>:-(

[The Not so Furious Pigeon]

As for Carly... first, I have no idea what "Chacun à son goût, non," means (my French is limited to oui, brie, beret and le pigeon).

Second, to highlight a quote provided by an avid outdoorsman colleague:

"People only protect what they love, and people only love what they understand."

Aside from turning us into a nation of obese, pasty urban cave dwellers, I dread the thought of nature becoming something feared rather than embraced; or something conquered, pruned and completely owned and fenced by someone else.