Youth should value their heritage

 

Parents are being urged to persuade their children to give the ‘Pokémon Go’ a break and give traditional Barbadian games a chance.
 
Minister of Culture, Sports and Youth, Stephen Lashley, says that not only may the children enjoy such games, but this effort can help to bridge the gap between the past and the present. Moreover, he noted that games like warri and hopscotch were not only enjoyable, but many were a source of exercise for the older generation. His comments came as he spoke last Friday at the Genealogy Marketplace held at the Archives Department.
 
“It is also important that we help them to fully grasp that this history is not simply a matter of names on a piece of paper and games that their grandparents played as children, but it is their heritage – who they are as a people. It should therefore have some relevance in their lives. We certainly hope that such knowledge would shape their futures,” he said.
 
 
He made the point as he contended that the often touted complaint of today’s children of being bored and their short attention spans, is partly the fault of the older generations. 
 
“When we were growing up we enjoyed the simple pleasures of life. We had fewer distractions. 
 
“Today’s youth have to balance the innovation and the creativity that technology brings, with finding time to be reflective of self and where they wish to go; to understand why pitching marbles and playing hopscotch meant so much to their forefathers and their foremothers as well. These games not only kept them fit, but certainly kept them very happy and fully entertained,” he noted.
 
Meanwhile, he is also encouraging the youth to make the effort to spend some time with older Barbadians. He said these engagements can be reciprocal, such that, the youth not only hear and understand the stories of those who have gone before them, but that they can share their experiences and technology with the older folks as well. (JRT)

 

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