We live in a culture that neuters boys. According to some studies as many as 15 to 20% of children, mostly boys, are put on ritalin at some point for hyperactivity. Gotta make those active little men sit quietly and do crafts like the little girls. What most need aren't mind altering drugs (ritalin has been called cocaine for kids); what they need is more time running, jumping, climbing, and letting off steam. But schools more and more are eliminating competitive games and vicious contact sports...like dodge ball. God forbid, that a little boy should get into a fight. Call the police! For the most part it's little boys standing in line at the principal's office for "behavioral problems." No surprise when parents are joining the gender police and encouraging their sons to be "princess boys."
Well, check out this video for a Catholic boys' camp. This is what all kids need, but boys especially! Run and play. Use your imagination to fight the evil empire. Channel that energy into activities that challenge both the mind and body! My grandson is there this weekend with his dad. Go for it, guys, and have a great time! I plan to try a zipline myself when we go on our vacation. When the body is active, so is the mind. Boys just need more of it!
Yes, God forbid that a boy should get into a fight. Violence is NEVER the answer. And neither is running around like a crazy person.
ReplyDeleteGood nutrition and good sleep habits are the key to moderate behavior. Kids can't go to school jacked up on Mountain Dew and Coco Puffs, after having fallen asleep at midnight to a television in their room.
It drives me crazy when you see boys running around like loons, punching each other, calling names and people say, "Boys will be boys." There is NO excuse for bad behavior.
Or maybe when you see a grown man who swears, drinks a lot of beer, and constantly tries to "one-up" everyone with a confrontational attitude (and there are plenty of these men!), you just think "men will be men?" YUCK.
Having been a boy, and remembering it well, I completely agree! Thank you!
ReplyDeleteI love it. Go! guys. Go! As a girl, I took swimming, archery, tennis, softball, field hocky, basketball and, of course, Dodge Ball, in public school in California in the 1950s and 1960s. I was healthy, wealthy, (not money wise but I had enough) and wise. No one bullied me, nor did I bully anyone else. We were taught fair play, called sportmanship. We were taught against yellow journalism in our journalism class, which is rampant in the newspapers now. Now our schools are ruined for the most part and many boys are on ritalin. God help us! Help us to go back to what was good and healthy, wise and right and Godly.
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