_Play in the Home._--Although the small family does not furnish
opportunity for group games, which are necessary for the satisfaction
both of children and adults, yet the movement for better play facilities
for the community should not overlook the fact that the home is the
fundamental social institution of rural life and that play and
recreation in the home are essential to its success and happiness. Home
games bind the family together, and parents who play with their
children find it much easier to secure and maintain their confidence.
The community may well give attention to the encouragement of games and
play in the homes as well as in the community gatherings. We need a
definite movement on the part of pastors, teachers, and especially by
such organizations as granges and farm and home bureaus for the
promotion of play by young and old in the farm home.
_Influence of the Automobile._--One of the values of the automobile is
that by its use many a farmer has been given a new realization of the
value of recreation. The new desire for recreation thus created is a
great gain for farm life. There is no reason why the farmer and his
family should not have as much enjoyment of life as town and city
people, and if they cannot, then only the poorer class of people will
remain on the farms. Occasionally one hears a commercial salesman or
some city business man decrying the effect of automobiles on farmers,
claiming that they are neglecting their work while chasing around the
country having a good time. Doubtless in occasional instances this is as
true of the farmer as it is of the townsman, but such farmers will soon
come to their senses or get off the farm, and even were there a general
tendency of this sort in some communities it must be regarded as the
temporary excitement of a new experience. On the other hand, the
breaking down of the old stolidity which dominated many a farmer who had
become so accustomed to work day in and day out that he was hardly happy
when he had a chance for recreation, and the creation of a wholesome
desire for a larger experience and more association with others, is one
of the largest gains in country life and will not only raise the
standards of living, but will be a potent incentive for better
agricultural methods. There can be no progress without a certain amount
of dissatisfaction. Contentedness has its virtues, but it may
degenerate into inertia and the death of all desire for better life.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account