Saturday, May 28, 2011

The Best Kind of Playground

When I see birches bend to left and right
Across the lines of straighter darker trees,
I like to think some boy's been swinging them...
~ Robert Frost
 
The other day I spent the morning at The American Horticultural Society's River Farm and was reminded of M's earlier post about the simplicity of play.
 

They have the loveliest children's garden there where we can spend hours and hours enjoying all of the beautiful nooks and crannies that encourage imagination and exploration.
 
After every visit (and we try to go regularly) I am always inspired to try to add some new feature to my own small garden, and I often wish that the urban playgrounds that we have easy access to were more than just metal slide/swing sets standing like a solitary skeleton atop some rubbarized mulch. Yes, those kinds of swings and slides can be great fun, but only for a while. Wouldn't it be so much nicer to have tire swings hanging from great tree branches and mini log cabins and flower mazes and viney arbors and weeping willows?
 


Dugout dens and digging pits and kid-sized picnic tables?



Remember in the "olden days" when kids just went outside to play and explore and didn't need fancy toys or expensive swingsets? Isn't it awesome when they can identify flowers and birds or pretend that they are butterflies or can watch the honeybees collecting nectar? When they can find a small private corner and have conversations with the insects and fairies?





Maybe I'm old-fashioned, but that is the best kind of play, I think.

7 comments:

Kumi said...

I'm glad that Maya has a good use of the backpack. It looks cute on her back.

Mark said...

Q, what you are describing is...living in the country.

MamaM said...

Agreed. Looks lovely there.

Jane said...

That place looks totally magical!

Kendra said...

Absolutely. My memories of childhood are of the trees I climbed, the hills I ran over and took a sled down and the delicious smell of the outdoors.

Kim said...

Hey! We saw a butterfly bench just like that one in Raleigh at Duke Gardens...

http://aisforakari.blogspot.com/2011/05/postcards-from-raleighdurhamchapel-hill.html

I totally want one for our yard! Looks like it was a fun day had by all.

MamaQ said...

Dad, that's just it - I'm not describing living in the country, I'm describing a play area where nature is incorporated. The beauty and genius is that it is not only relegated to the country - because this is in a location just outside the city! there is plenty of opportunity for more greenspace in the city - it would be so lovely if more playground planning included natural features such as these, instead of just large singsets and slides standing out in the middle of a patch of asphalt, baking in the hot sun.