BASSETERRE, St. Kitts - IT is now summer and most children are away from school; they are on vacation. For some, it is that time for travelling to different countries while for others it is a time to break from school and have fun running around doing childish things.
In the olden days, there were always many summer camps from which to choose. But today, an individual can count them on one hand.
This has left many people to wonder if it is one of the reasons why so many children have gone astray. Consequently, SKNVibes PEP decided to take a walk around downtown Basseterre and ask a number of persons, “What is it you miss about the summer vacation that children lack today?”
First to respond was a male employee of the Electricity Department, who said, “I miss the Boys Scouts group and Girls Guides and those stuff. Summer should not only be about playing and having fun but values should also be incorporated as hands-on skills that children can use, because 99 percent of the children today want quick money and thinking about picking up guns.”
A young woman said she misses going out in the streets and play with wheels and marbles with the other children in her neighborhood. “The children today lack discipline and all they know about is computers, iPods and cell phones,” she added.
Osborne shared a similar opinion but stressed more on religion.
He said, “They lack God. They need to go to church summer camps where men and women of God could guide them in different ways. With God all things are possible. So, as long as they walk that path we would have better children growing up in today’s society.”
Another young lady, who preferred to be called Miss Anonymous, said, “Summer and library camps are definitely missing these days, along with other educational fun activities. When I was younger we had so many summer camps to choose from. Also the parents today have gotten too lazy and are the ultimate responsibility. They need to get more involved with their children and stop leaving them to do whatever they feel.”
A store clerk name Yolanda Parris had quite a lot to add. She said summer vacations are lacking decent programmes for the children and that the government needs to implement educational programmes for children not travelling abroad, especially those who are slow in school, in order to help prepare them for the new school term.
She went on to say that parents who could not afford to send their children abroad should organise groups in which adults could speak to the children about a number of things, including peer pressure which they have to deal with on a daily basis; instead of having them on the streets or staying at home with siblings who cannot supervise them properly.
Finally, a woman police officer said, “The children today lack their youth; they grow up too fast these days and all they know about are fancy electronics. I remember back in the days when we made our own toys, play dolly house, skipping rope and hop scotch in the streets and run cart. This used to be a daily thing from the time our parents leave for work until they get home. Sometimes, in between, we play a little sports, but the children now hardly know anything about these things…they are lacking the innocence of their youth.”
In a recent commentary posted on SKNVibes written by Maurice Williams, he spoke of some of the things they did in the olden days during the summer vacation.
Some of those things included making spinning tops, throwing stones at jack spanners, running wheels and tires and playing games like hands in and green bush.
He also spoke of the days when they would tell jumbie stories and the children would be afraid to pass the cemetery. But all of a sudden, today, the cemetery has become a ‘liming spot’.
Gone are those days. Now we see gang activity, violence, PSP’s and other electronic devices taking over as the world seem to have become small and everything is at our fingertips. However, everyday a child is born and it is never too late to reach one who can perhaps reach another and continue the cycle.
