Ahead of me a very old and tired looking man carries a big empty box with the word Stroller on it in large white letters. He looks back, not at me, but at the woman and said stroller behind me, replete with screaming child, tethered securely in.
Strollers are a bad thing for children. I realize, for many a busy, harried adult, they are a godsend. But when these restrained children grow up, they are going to have plenty of leg, hip and back problems.
Strollers only compound a problem we already have with our youth, who sit for long periods of time in front of electronic devices.
Young children scream and squirm when in strollers because they need to walk, run and move around. Sadly, I see many children who have now resigned to their fate and sit sadly in the stroller. I have never seen a happy child in one.
As a child I walked everywhere with my Mom. I loved stairs and would run up and down to my hearts content. I am sure I wore my Mother out! In later years she told me that it was the stair climbing that got to her the most. She added however, that this is what parents are for – to look after their children, often at the expense of their own well being. Her duty was to keep a watchful eye on me and keep me from harm, and to let me be a kid. And kids are boundless energy.
Once she tried to put a harness on me and discovered I completely wound myself up in it the one second she looked away. That was the end of that. Instead both parents taught me to know restraint by using my brain, so I sat still on buses, and did not run off across the street. They taught me to respect other people and their property so I restrained my curiosity and used my imagination instead.
I know that how I feel is an unpopular stance, but I think too often parents are only thinking of themselves and their own well being and forget what it means to be a child. Let your children be free, and let them be children. We restrain them in so many ways, not just with strollers. They cannot explore or run, or even be on their own. They miss all the magic and fun of growing up.
Let them be kids this Christmas. I know for many it is too late. They will spend all Christmas staring at blue light, instead of merrily ripping open pretty packages and delighting in toys and play. Will there even be a Christmas tree? Or music and laughter and dancing? Will there be any activity other than fingers skipping madly over keys?
Throw away your strollers, open up the door and go out in the snow. Have a snow ball fight, build a fort. Decorate a Christmas tree. Play with your children. You might just find the kid in yourself once more.
Remember the true meaning of Christmas. This is the time a saviour was born. It is a time to celebrate, be joyous and active. The spirit fills many of us with cheer because someone came to save us from ourselves. Jesus loved little children and admonished those who would not let them be who they are. Check it out for yourself.
