It seems like parents and grandparents are under more pressure than ever to overschedule their children to be involved in activities that drown the calendar and rob the family of ever needed interaction.

My fear is that like so many other activities our children are being pushed to make sure they excel is some kind of activity. While football is king, we now have school sports almost year around.

Our kids are encouraged to excel in things like gymnastics, 4-H, and robotics, etc. My family has been involved in all three and it is awesome to watch them perform and show off many skills.

Not all will excel in something. Some research I have read says as many as 75-80 percent of kids fall into this category. They will be just an average student, or an average athlete (like me), but will accomplish things in life in spite of the system or pre-conceived notions of what others think they ought to be or do.

We throw academics into the pile of pressure. Parents continually complain to me about the amount of homework. I understand. Occasionally, I work with my grandkids with their homework. I’ve seen them fall asleep at the dinner table. Rather than having family time to interact over their evening meal, kids are sitting there with textbooks open.

I think it is awesome that so many kids excel academically. But not all do. I’ve tutored many a teen in Algebra. Some get it and others never do. I applaud students who make all A’s and B’s but I love the ones who don’t just as well.

I enjoy working with young children. I spent three years overseeing the beginnings of the t-ball and little league program for the city of Valley Grande. I do believe that t-ball is one of God’s gifts to us all. It is entertaining and instructional by nature. Every year I had to remind some family members that this was not try-outs for the Atlanta Braves. It was a time for children (ages 3-5) to have some exercise and encouraged family involvement.

My grandkids have been playing Upward Soccer at Valley Grande Baptist for many years now. It is a great program for children as it teaches them the basics of soccer and gives them two months of weekly exercise. What I like most of all about t-ball and Upward Soccer is that they involve one hour of practice a week and a game on Saturday. I hear parents talk about needing more practice and more games every year.

They are missing the key point of these programs. It’s all about spending quality times with your children all week long. It’s spending time every day (even 30 minutes) kicking a soccer ball around with your children or pitching baseballs to your kids while they learn skills from you. I still have hope. I’ll stay on my soapbox as long as I live encouraging families to find time to interact every day with their children whether pre-school or high school age. Don’t let other people rob you of the joy of raising your kids.

Interacting with your kids makes life “Simply Beautiful.”

 

Larry Stover lives in Valley Grande and is pastor at Praise Park Ministries Church of the Nazarene.