We're coming to the end of the school holidays and I'll be first to hold my hands up and say this year the kids have spent way too much time inside or on their electrical devices. I guess having the children off school since mid-march, due to the Covid19 pandemic, has made us a bit lazy, a bit sluggish and days have started to merge together. But now here we are, one week away from the return to school and desperately trying to cram as much into this week as we can, as the sudden realisation that we have run out of time, paradoxically for some of us (me in particular!) that was too much time to do very little.
In the last couple of days we have visited beaches, lakes, woodlands, rivers and parks, courtesy of our National Trust Memberships. Living in the heart of Somerset what excuse do we have to not go out and enjoy the vast amount of countryside that's sat right on our doorstep.
Yesterday the children spent a full hour just throwing stones into a lake, who would have thought that would be so much fun? And it was free! Apart from a small donation for parking the rest of the activities we have done over the last few days hasn't cost us a thing! It was refreshing to watch the children find sticks and collect leaves. Not once did I have too hear a call of 'my tablet has run out of battery' or 'I'm bored.’ While we were exploring time flew by and the children were able to entertain themselves.
I think as an adult, with all the day to day commitments and worries its easy to forget how important being outdoors is to children! It’s sometimes just easier to have a day in, switch on the TV or allow the kids to be entertained by Minecraft or Roblox while we catch up with endless loads of washing and house work. As a child I was blessed to live on a farm with hundreds of acres of land to play in. I spent the majority of my time (out of school hours) climbing trees, making dens, getting into streams, exploring, learning, growing the way a child should, through taking risks and through experiencing all the things the great out doors has to offer. In just a few short days I have been reminded of why being in nature is so important! This is the beauty of childhood, it’s getting into a river with no regards to how cold the water is or who might be watching. It’s climbing a tree just to see how high you can get. It's lying in the sand pretending you’re a mermaid. It's rolling down a hill covering your clothes in green grass stains. It's eating picnics while desperately trying to hide the jam sandwiches from the wasps. It’s running so fast your legs feel like they're going to fall off. Childhood is the most valuable time and we should give our children the opportunity to get the most from it.
So with only one weekend remaining, I advise we all get out, go for a walk, climb a hill, smell the flowers so to speak. To remember what's it’s like to be a child. Regroup and reconnect with nature, afterall, during our life span we only get a few summer holidays with our children, let's make the most of them.... let’s make memories!
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