Catching Lizards & Nature-Deficit Disorder « AARP
Not so strange that I remember exactly the same things from my childhood, a lifetime ago and 10,000 kms apart.
My kids are all grown now but they still talk about the adventures they had at the stream down the hill from us where a lovely young mother taught them, along with her own little ones, how to fasten a reed loop snare to catch lizards, watch them in the shoe box, and then let them go.
Not so strange that I remember exactly the same things from my childhood, a lifetime ago and 10,000 kms apart.
Excerpts below -the full article can be read from the link above
Photo the property and work of Luigi Guarino
'...... Like many of you, I remember a childhood where we were pushed out the door to play and told to come back when the streetlights came on or we heard dad yelling from down the street that dinner was ready, whichever came first! I won’t wax nostalgic about simpler, safer times – that’s not my point. But when was the last time you saw kids just playing outside, team sports excluded?
My kids are all grown now but they still talk about the adventures they had at the stream down the hill from us where a lovely young mother taught them, along with her own little ones, how to fasten a reed loop snare to catch lizards, watch them in the shoe box, and then let them go.
Or when they caught tadpoles in the same stream and brought them home to their aquarium and watch them turn into frogs (not mom’s favorite!). Or, after we moved to the DC area, racing their friends on their bikes in the “Haycock Woods” over the bumpy trails between the elementary and middle schools. I felt especially blessed the day I was invited to get on my bike so they could show me their special trails.
Now, 10 years later, the “Haycock Woods” has been turned into townhomes, the stream has been walled off as denser housing built up around it, and the bikes have been donated to charity. But the memories live on forever. I believe they helped my children develop a wider sense of responsibility for the natural world, and a deeper sense of connection to it. I worry my grandchildren will have to work much harder for those connections.'
Now, 10 years later, the “Haycock Woods” has been turned into townhomes, the stream has been walled off as denser housing built up around it, and the bikes have been donated to charity. But the memories live on forever. I believe they helped my children develop a wider sense of responsibility for the natural world, and a deeper sense of connection to it. I worry my grandchildren will have to work much harder for those connections.'
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