The Joy of a Commercial Playground
No matter what phase of history we are in, children are going to love to play on all kinds of things in their younger years. This is why playground equipment is still found at every school for children, and even the commercial playground has become popular in the last decade or two. Playgrounds have evolved over the years to become both more safe, and also a little more fun–depending on the point of view of the child. One thing is for certain: it does not take much to make a child happy as long as they are on some kind of playground.
With the invention and domination of fast food chain restaurants, the commercial playground has become something that we see everywhere now. Most of the chains now cater to the small children who love their food by putting both indoor and outdoor playgrounds at all of their locations. It is common knowledge that many stay-at-home mothers and fathers will take the kids who are too young for school out of the house whenever they have to run errands. Making lunch for you and your children everyday is not an easy task, and so it understood that many of these errand-runs will make a stop at small restaurant, but what kind of restaurant would want small children in it?
Well if these eateries have a commercial playground attached to them, then that is a pretty clear signal that both you and your children are welcome to come in and play. Many people tend to view fast food chains as large corporations who do not care about their customers, but adding in something for kids to play on is a great benefit to their customers that they do not have to build in order to get more business. Even if it is getting them more business, and they are only doing it to get more money, at least it is something that kids enjoy.
The commercial playground aside, playgrounds in general, especially the ones at schools, have changed drastically over the years. One of the most famous pieces of playground equipment in decades past was the merry-go-round. This is not to be confused with a carousel, which moves slowly in an automated circle. The merry-go-round is the small iron disc that is spun by children who hold the sides and run as fast as they can. This certain piece of equipment has since been deemed much too dangerous for the normal playground, and thus it is no longer seen at schools and publics grounds. Though schools are absolutely correct that this particular piece of equipment is dangerous, that does not make it any less fun!
The merry-go-round is just one of many things that has been removed from the playgrounds over the years. The most recent one is that many play areas no longer have sand in them. Instead they have something like solid rubber, or even shredded bark from trees. Perhaps mothers were tired of their children having sandy shoes all of the time. No matter how much these parks and playgrounds change, they will always be something that make children happy.
It is a shame that people cannot stay young enough to always enjoy this simple lifestyle. We get old, and we get too big for a lot of the equipment. Though it can bring a parent great joy to see their child out on the slide having fun, there is still a hint of loss that this is something they can no longer do. Perhaps parents can still play on the jungle gym sometimes, but only when no one is looking.