I went to another “Kindergarten Sports Day” on Saturday.
Call it an occupational hazard; call it what you will, but it was fun.
I was cheering, encouraging, and laughing at/with all the little kids doing their best.
And then I started thinking about how I would fair, if I had to do what they were doing.
Sure it looks easy and comical from the sidelines with a “been there done that” attitude;
but … what if I had to go out and do that now? Could I do it?
It definitely wouldn’t be fun.
I’d most likely be seriously uncoordinated and rhythmically challenged; or sweaty, breathing hard, and very embarrassed; or both. Probably both.
So … when was the last time you …
did a bit of drumming and marching?
carried around a keyboard and made some great music?
wore pompoms on your wrists and did intricate dance routines?
saw a guy with a gun and were semi-happy?
did a bit of climbing with a crowd watching?
did some somersaulting?
or did some competitive crawling like you meant it?
I guess performers, military personnel, and athletes do this kind of stuff regularly; but why do most people stop doing these things?
Is it just a natural part of growing up? does it cease to be fun at some point? or is it something else?
I don’t have any answers; I’m just wondering.
note: the man with the starter’s pistol is actually a buddhist monk.
I Am The Cheese 
Oh, this is terrific. The photos and the commentary! And, not one soccer ball in sight. The guy with the gun? You know you have a bad T shirt when you are carrying a gun and people only notice the T shirt.
Now, THIS I could watch all day.
Response:
1) No to all in the past 25+ years (sober)
2) Yes to all in the past 3 weeks (unsober)
The question is: was it ever fun? It’s certainly entertaining for the parents watching and for planetross, but have you noticed the faces of the little pompom wearers… or the drummers? Do they look amused?
I bet they would much rather be home playing with their Nintendo Wii… but that would not be as much fun to watch.
I try to keep my competitive crawling to a minimum these days.
Are Buddhist Monks allowed to don Mickey tee-shirts? I mean, aren’t they supposed to be mendicants? I’m so confused. I think that’s a defrocked monk if I have ever seen one!
It all looks like a blast. My world view has been pretty kid-centric lately and this sort of thing only makes me grin all the more. I wish I was there to see this too. I think Short Stack would have wanted to jump right in an join them. How much would he have stood out being the little red head that he is!?
-Turkish Prawn
Ooh! My aching back!
That Monk is cool!
Thanks for all the comments.
w1kkp: all of the staff were wearing those Mickey Mouse shirts. They are kind of creepy really.
pannonica: hee hee. I’m pretty sure I haven’t done a somersault intentionally since I was 10.
nathaliewithanh: the looks on the children’s faces are “extreme concentration” or “professional nonchalantness“.
Turkish Prawn: Short Stack would definitely stick out.
S. Le: my aching back too! I will have to check if he is a buddhist monk or a shinto priest. I may have made a mistake. I get those 2 mixed up sometimes.