In this article in the NYTimes on the toy company Melissa and Doug, it was not the number of toy sales or the square footage of their home that caught my attention. It was the description from co-founder Melissa Bernstein, of how creativity helped her deal with anxiety in her own life, that caught my eye. In her words, “When I create it makes me so happy. I’m able to soothe myself.”
The toy company makes traditional toys (wood blocks, puzzles), toys that involve active play. This is the question popping into my head: is there a connection between the rise in anxiety in children, and the reduction in time children spend playing creatively? There is more anxiety out there, it isn’t just my imagination. Anxiety in children has increased in the past 50 years.
Is our stimulating world too engaging for the ever active mind? I know this to be true for me. I cannot watch television or a movie without carrying images and words around in my head for a couple of days. I cannot watch the news and then go to bed without dreaming about those who have been injured, killed, disadvantaged.
Must this also be true for children? As a parent I am very suspicious of screens. I want my children to live life actively, not passively. As the number of screens in the home increase so does the work that I do to monitor.
Ultimately, I am willing to do the work because I am in the camp of Melissa, who said, “Her own childhood taught her that creativity can be a salve.” My own body and mind calm when I get into the creative zone. As for the kids and the reduction in screen time at our home, ultimately life has a way of working these things out!
Peace to all, quietude to all.
Shanthi