Editor:
The letter from Garfield Pennington (“Real kid stuff,” March 12) evoked wonderful memories of my own childhood and the freedom children of that era (the ’40s and ’50s) had to roam freely around their neighbourhoods in complete safety.
My own children were fortunate to grow up on acreage where they could climb trees, dig in the mud, create forts and treehouses and ride their bikes.
Fast forward to the current day. Unless you are fortunate enough to own acreage or a large backyard, how could you possibly allow a child to wander freely around the neighbourhood? How could you allow a child to disappear on their bike for hours at a time as I recall doing as a child in perfect safety? Maybe I am an alarmist but in today’s society the risks of allowing your children the same freedoms that we enjoyed years ago is too great and that is such a sad fact.
Maybe the “experts” do not consider current playgrounds as the best option for creative child development, but today’s generation seem to enjoy them a lot and I applaud municipalities for providing creative play areas, skate parks and water parks where children can socialize with their friends, make new friends and have fun while a parent or caregiver can keep a watchful eye from a distance.
Linda Kenney, Gibsons
