Find the whole article written by John Donaldson here: Why Little League Matters
“As I write this, millions of boys and girls around the world are beginning another baseball and softball season in more than 6,800 Little League programs.
In a time when competition for our children’s time is intense – school-related activities, a rich variety of sports options, and even a variety of choices for youth baseball and softball – it’s fair to ask why Little League matters in today’s world. The answer speaks less to how children find ways to exercise, and more to the challenges that will face them as they grow up in an increasingly complex world.
Most of us of a certain age can remember childhoods filled with neighborhood activities that involved physical activity and interactions that provoke rich memories, even today. Our parents shooed us outside in the morning and called us back for meals. School activities were open to everyone, regardless of ability. Today, most schools are cutting back on physical education programs; kids are devoting more time to technology-driven activities that keep them inside, inactive, and apart from physical interaction with others their age. Many families are dual-income households, free time is at a premium, and activity schedules are regulated.
Childhood has become less about unstructured, collaborative fun and more about competition and pursuing individual achievement. In a world where parents are bombarded with messages about giving their kids an edge and developing elite skills, where you can find coaching and mentoring pitches that almost guarantee a path to scholarships and success, something crucial can be lost.
When I was a coach in Little League, my team played for the league championship. The players were nervous, so I took them out into left field before the game and tried to put things into perspective. I told them that in ten years, they would not remember what the score was. They would remember that it was a glorious spring day, the sun was shining, and they were playing baseball with their friends. It has now been more than fifteen years since that day, and these twelve kids, one of them my son, have grown into adults. I still see some of these former players from time to time in our community. Invariably, they still remember their time playing baseball with their friends. More importantly, they retained the life lessons that Little League taught them, lessons that help during the often difficult path from childhood to becoming successful adults.”
