Piddingworth Greg Benton |
pidd.net |
|
|
 |
| 'Piddingworth...where St. George's Cross is not yet banned.' --Mark Steyn |
 |
 |
| RE-DISCOVERING BOYHOOD |
| It's not unusual that when I telephone my younger brother my young nephew, ever eager to know what's going on, answers. When I enquire of him what he is 'doing', he invariably answers that he is 'on the computer' playing a game. It could be any number of games that he has and I gather that he is quite skilled at the computer. I do wonder sometimes how many millions of other boys are sitting at a desk in front of a computer monitor, every day? Technological advances are meant to make life a little easier or more interesting or more helpful. The enormous use of the television and now the computer is testimony to their power in the lives of people. Personally, I am particularly impressed with the invention of the dishwasher. For the most part, the times have changed dramatically in the daily lives of kids since the fifties of my childhood when television was in it's infancy and computers were something of science fiction. Typewriters, having gone the way of the Dodo, have been replaced by keyboards and, unlike the former where few boys learned to 'type' (it being the instrument of necessity for girls whose expectation then was for having some 'commercial' skill, e.g., to be someone's secretary), most young people today can move through a keyboard and do text messaging at amazing speed...and the expectations are pretty much the same for boys or girls. Not only that, but 'organised fun' and registered 'activity' consumes much of their time with lessons for this and that and highly demanding team sports with schedules that mirror that of a professional athlete. The less-than-hidden undercurrent in all of this 'progress' is an estrangement of boys (in this case) from the kind of activities that used to be not only 'available' but desirable in the development and growth into manhood. For one thing, boys in so-called 'normal' families don't seem to have as much 'free time' to engage in the sport of the imagination, wonder, discovery and the like. Certainly, when I was a boy, I had an enormous amount of time for 'free' play...whether walking in the woods, or gathering up pollywogs, or catching a praying mantis, or reading classic comic book stories or whatever and that still included time for music lessons, band practice, serving at the church and playing a sport. In-between I found a way to deliver a daily newspaper and two weeklies. As I recall, it took some rehearsed skill to balance oneself on the bicycle with all the newspapers in the sack and accurately toss each to it's destination. Sundays were particularly gruelling as the newpaper on that day was at least twice the size of the regular. It was my very experience in 'public relations' because my customers, having a variety of dispositions, sometimes complained about this or that. Later on, I would 'graduate' to bicycle delivery for a drug store...where the contents were much lighter, the speed much faster and the greeting at the door usually quite pleasant. Part of this change in terms of 'freedom of time' may well be due to the very sad and dramatic rise in the fear and presence of perverts who would find a boy on his own easier prey. The same phenomenon applies to little girls as well. While I'm certain that there a lot of these sick and evil types around in Grandad's day, I'm equally certain of the lack of any tolerance for it, i.e., permitting the offender to be out on bail or otherwise 'freed'. It's unfathomable. Another reason may also be one of choice by a boy's parents to provide him with all the latest material and techno stuff to keep him busy or simply to 'keep up' with 'others'. I wonder how many kids 'earn' the latest update in their 'toys' or other stuff rather than have them simply supplied by Mummy or Daddy. Still, as a boy I was a 'Wolf Cub', then Boy Scout, then Sea Cadet; all of which did provide me with activities and knowledge that I might otherwise have never discovered or acquired and that still come in handy...things like knots, and the use of a compass, and Morse Code. These wonderful organisations, whose programmes, at least in Scouting, have become somewhat less 'adventurous' today, also provided a basis for character formation, and a sense of one's identity. More than the Jungle Book, we also learned our history and about flags. One great test was always to see if one of the scouts could tell if the Union Jack was flying upside-down. But these groups met only once a week leaving plenty of time for homework and personal discovery. The idea of just 'hanging out' at some mall did not exist...thank goodness. There just seemed to be a whole bunch of things to do and wonder about. Into the 21st century void comes this super book, 'The Dangerous Book For Boys' by brothers Conn and Hal Iggulden and a remarkable book it is! Much of its contents are recognisable from the Handbook for Boys in Scouting whilst other parts are a collection of activities and knowledge that one might have picked up along the way...and perhaps not. The Synopsis for the sale of the book describes it this way: If ever there was a book to make you switch off your television set, "The Dangerous Book for Boys" is it. How many other books will help you thrash someone at conkers, race your own go-cart, and identify the best quotations from Shakespeare? "The Dangerous Book for Boys" gives you facts and figures at your fingertips - swot up on the solar system, learn about famous battles and read inspiring stories of incredible courage and bravery. Teach your old dog new tricks. Make a pinhole camera. Understand the laws of cricket. There's a whole world out there: with this book, anyone can get out and explore it. "The Dangerous Book for Boys" is written with the verve and passion that readers of Conn Iggulden's number one bestselling novels have come to expect. This book, his first non-fiction work, has been written with his brother as a celebration of the long summers of their youth and as a compendium of information so vital to men of all ages. Lavishly designed and fully illustrated in colour and black and white throughout, it's set to be a perfect gift for Father's Day and beyond. Chapters in "The Dangerous Book for Boys" include: The Seven Ancient Wonders of the World, Conkers, Laws of Football, Dinosaurs, Fishing, Juggling, Timers and Tripwires, Kings and Queens, Famous Battles, Spies, Making Crystals, Insects and Spiders, Astronomy, Girls, The Golden Age of Piracy, Secret Inks, Patron Saints of Britain, Skimming Stones, Dog Tricks, Making a Periscope, Coin Tricks, Marbles, Artillery, The Origin of Words, and The Solar System. The wonderful thing is that none of the above requires a television or a computer or a Blackberry or a digital camera...just a little time, imagination and wonder...and a great opportunity for boys and their Dads to spend some time together on some of these things. Indeed, Dads who missed out on a lot of this 'boy' stuff, might find it an antidote to the technoworld in which they must live at work or at home. Why all these are 'dangerous', one can guess, is that they permit a boy the freedom to explore, discover, acquire, master, and know things that will help him learn to be independent, confident, self-reliant, engaged with the real world, and perhaps even a something of a gentleman! That just doesn't fit the prevailing culture's view of boys. I don't think that my nephew is a regular visitor to this website so I can safely say that this would make a terrific Christmas present for him...and his Dad. There is an American version out too. |
 |