Well, I got started on a thread of thought and language this morning and then thought “hey, wait a minute: this might do for someplace other than that blog.” And not wanting to be guilty (or at least blamed) by other local bloggers (no names named) for regurgitating blog-cud for print uses, I’ve decided to let that little ramble ferment offline for a while.
So suffice it to leave you with a quote about our nature-alienated youth:
“These kids are becoming so acculturated to very fancy devices that do 50 things at one time that they can’t grasp how going out into nature and just looking or relaxing can be rewarding,” said Kevin Truitt, the principal of San Francisco’s Mission High School. “To go on a hike, to participate in nature, to just look at the beauty is foreign to them.”
Things seem to be moving along with such thoughts and book two took a large leap forward yesterday, perhaps, in connecting with a Floydian with an eye and the skills I need for page layout and book design! Yip!
and to take it a little further, i think not only chidren are detached, but adults are, too. adults that grew up in nature, but now are so distracted by all the ‘virtual’ gadgetry as you say.
i so hope to strike a good balance in our home…
Parents … that’s who we are to blame. I count it a great accomplishment of my parenting that I have a 7th grader who will take a book and go climb a tree and sit and read or take his journal and write about what he sees and experiences in nature.
Now what lowlife other bloggers would accuse you of recycling blog posts into newspaper columns? Shame of them!
You’re looking at one of the primary reasons the Blue Ridge Parkway cites for their dramatic drop in traffic in recent years: Kids don’t want to take long, leisurely drives through scenic country and they certainly don’t want to abandon their in-car DVD screens and portable game devices long enough to actually take a walk and commune with nature.
Yes it is those young kids that you speak of Doug, who miss so much. What a shame for them!
I can’t wait to get back and do just that again, after being away for so many years. Take a long, leisurely drive through many scenic areas like Floyd, Franklin, Montgomery, etc.! I plan to spend a lot of time on long leisurely drives. Thanks for bringing back those memories!