Sofiah Shariman

Original post: Sunday, December 30, 2012.

Re-posted from: http://superstarrsophie.blogspot.com

I don't know but it's as if parents these days are unimaginative and can't seem to find other ways to entertain their child besides simply handing their children their iPads or iPods or iPhones or any other devices to play with. I've seen many parents do this: at restaurants while waiting for their food to arrive, at houses while visiting people, at seating areas in shopping malls and everywhere else. Now, because of this that is all their children think of. When the children are bored, they ask for their parent's iPod or iPad or iPhone or other devices and when their parents are busy using them themselves and refuse to hand it to their children, they throw a fit. To calm their children down, they reluctantly hand it to them and their children stop and enjoy the device.

Parents these days should think and be more imaginative. Think of other ways to entertain their children. Teach them to joy of reading books. Teach them the joy of television shows. Don't just teach them how to slide open the iPhone. Don't just teach them how to tap on the iPad. Don't just teach them how to play Angry Birds or Temple Run or whatever games it is you parents teach your children to play. My mum used to read to me to entertain me. She talked to me to entertain me. She played games with me and no, I did not mean that we'd play some iPhone games or Internet games but, real games.

There are just so many children I see today, running around while carrying their parent's iPads and iPhones and iPods. Some parents don't want to be bothered by their children asking to use it while they're using it themselves that they buy the devices for their children's own use.

So, today I was shocked in a good way. For the first time, in a long time I did not see two siblings using the iPad while waiting for their food to arrive at a restaurant. This family was sitting at a table opposite mine. They just ordered their food and the waiter left to deliver their order to the kitchen. The two brothers took out their board game and laid out the pieces on the board and started playing it. One brother had the blue pieces and the other brother had the green pieces and I couldn't help but stare at them. They've been brought up well but, it's not that I'm saying other children aren't brought up well. It's just that these children were brought up differently than the children of this generation who only know how to entertain themselves with the many applications and softwares the new devices have to offer and without them, they think can't be entertained. I wanted to take a photo of the boys but soon after I was done admiring them (well more like, staring at them) my food had arrived and I realized how hungry I was.