Chins Up

It’s a sign of our times when the playground chin-up bars at our local junior high school are replaced by bleachers. The chin-up bars were a fixture on the La Cumbre Junior High playground for decades.They were enjoyed by young and old.

Chin up bars offer people a challenge: “Can you jump up and reach me?” “How high can you swing on me?” “Can you pull yourself up and over me?”

Playground bleachers on the other hand represent idleness: “Why take part?” “Let’s just sit on the sidelines and watch”. “I give up. It’s too hard.” Idleness is the root of many of today’s societal problems.

Are we sending our kids the wrong message by replacing their chin-up bars with bleachers?—Steve Morris