Meta Trav@Meta_Trav
Technology isn't the problem. The kids' peer group is. Where I lived before, there was literally nowhere to go and no kids to play with. No "lots of time outdoors" existed. But when you have that, when kids can run outside and find friends every single day, they don't touch screens. They just don't. I see this now.
But here's what I also see. This peer group is fragile. It's literally 2 families within 2 streets keeping my kids busy. That's it. Two. If those families aren't around, the whole thing collapses instantly. We're back to zero. And it's not like the old days where families went to church together, where the adults actually knew each other and were aligned. The parents barely talk. We have a "wave to each other" relationship.
Even worse, these families are completely bought into the running around lifestyle. My kids come home constantly with "So and so had to go to gymnastics." Peak play hours? Gone. Everyone's driving to activities. The whole street operates like this. School, then scattered to different locations for extracurriculars. This "lots of time outdoors" thing could fall apart any day. It's a math problem. And the math is actually terrible.
The boomers have no idea how lucky they had it. A massive demographic explosion of same-aged families all concentrated in the exact same suburban developments. Close-knit houses but still tons of open space for kids to play. Church still binding everyone together. One parent working, one at home.
It's actually insane how perfectly aligned everything was for them.