Whatever happened to children playing tennis outside?? Perhaps it shows how out of touch I am with the 'real' world, a fact I am mighty proud of too I hasten to add! I had the opportunity today to witness three primary age children fighting over who was going to be playing tennis with their TV, call me old fashion but why anyone would wish to encourage their children to play an outside game indoors? This is really quiet beyond me. It was bad enough when it was only the TV you had to contend with to get children to go outside and get some fresh air, now it is computers and interactive TV games as well. As an adult have you ever wondered how may hours a week you sit there glued to an ugly box in the corner of your room sitting there like a lump waiting for it to stimulate and entertain you? How many hours of your life have you wasted just sitting there? We don't watch TV, which many people find astounding, 'what do you do then' is the common response, Mmmmmm talk to each other, read, garden, go for walk, visit friends, yoga, meditate, write a letter, phone a friend, cuddle my cat, do housework, go for a swim, take up a hobby, study, the list is as endless as your imagination, which is my point. What is happening to innocent children's imagination? Can they use their imagination? Do children really know how to play anymore? Are they being encouraged to communicate with their friends and families? Or are they just handed more and more electronic rewards that will take them deeper into the solitude of their own private computer animated worlds? Is it healthy to have a computer game or TV to be your child minder?? As a child I was rarely inside, as were my children, we knew how to play how to have real fun and more importantly how to laugh, run, climb, build things, plant a garden, and even get dirty. The children I see these day's are like plastic, all the same, wearing fashions that are to old for them acting years older than they are all trying to 'fit' in and be one of the crowd. With the more gadgets that come into the shops we are seeing children becoming more and more dependant on things to bring them pleasure in life, a pleasure that will only last until the novelty wears off and the new must have item is up for grabs. Is this really what childhood is really about?