Quote:
Originally Posted by Textcritic
This is interesting to me because it suggests that you have attached some intrinsic value to the word (or concept) of an "athlete." By doing so you are also, possibly inadvertently, devaluing other leisure activities or forms of entertainment for not conforming to an ideal you have about "athletes."
I think this also feeds into your own value-perception of what constitutes "sports," which does not necessarily equitably reflect the entire gamut. I am an older guy, and as such there are social dynamics which are really important and meaningful to my kids that drive me crazy. By the same token, there are other dynamics and truisms which I value, but which my kids find to be irrelevant. Whether we like it or not, our world is changing. Our means and methods of "social education" and interaction are changing dramatically. It is neither becoming something better or worse, it's just the way our world works.
What if your kids have no desire to play any sports? What if they don't wish to be enrolled? What if they would prefer to spend all that time playing video games within their huge social networks?
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My kids will be enrolled in sports, because I want them to at least to have experienced that dynamic. If they choose to continue with it, that's up to them. I never asked to be signed up for little league baseball, but 7 of the 8 years I played were entirely by my own choice. The bigger the base, the taller the tower. It is my responsibility as a parent to provide that base.