It was also a time of RESPECT especially towards parents and anyone older.



If we were told to come in at a certain time, we did so. If we were playing ball and it accidentally went into someone's garden, we went to the door, apologised and politely requested its return. If the owner refused we may have felt upset but accepted it. After all, the ball shouldn't have been on their property in the first place. If the owner wasn't in we would NEVER dream of just going into someone's garden without their permission.

However, it may well have meant the end of the game for in those days people had just one ball. There was none of this "Oh never mind, we'll just get another". If your ball got lost , that was it.

Whether it be cricket, football, rounders or tennis - the ball had to be found. We searched in the dykes, the long grass and the corn fields ever wary and conscious that we were sometimes trespassing and hoping we'd be out before the farmer came.

Today, however, the story is much different. We live in a throw away society and values appear to have changed. Infact, whole life styles have changed and not always for the better.

My friend has lived in the same house for almost thirty years. It is a nice two bedroomed semi in a cul-de-sac on a pleasant fairly affluent estate. The area is not run down and close to her property within view is a large park area ideal for children to play.

However, they don't.

Instead the children living in the cul-de-sac, together with their friends who live elsewhere, play in the road. They run in and out of the numerous cars parked outside and across the open plan gardens of the fourteen houses found there.

This is the problem.

My friend who is very kind, friendly and loves children understandably got a bit fed up having children (some of whom she didn't even know) continually go into her garden, trample her plants and knock over her ornaments without even asking to retrieve their balls.

She asked them politely to play in the field round the back. When they didn't and the situation continued she had a neighbourly word with their parents. However, instead of beng met with understanding she was accused of being a miserable spoil sport and now feels a prisoner in her own home.

Since her request my friend's car has been scratched, the mirror broken twice and it's been used as a goal for football practice. The father of one set of neighbouring children had even been playing tennis with his offspring when some of these incidents occurred so you would think he would have offered some sort of apology. After all that's what responsible adults do - right? Wrong.

When my friend suggested they all go down to the park area where there was plenty of room to play he simply suggested in no uncertain terms that "SHE" was being awkward and a miserable old woman who spoilt everyone's fun.

Now, she gets called names whenever she leaves her house and no longer feels able to sit out in her front garden where she has spent many happy hours over the years.

So what are we doing to our kids to make them so disrespectful?

I read somewhere the average father spends about 10 minutes per day talking to his children. At first I didn't believe it but then I realised the long hours some people spend at work and travelling might mean they left home before their children got up and returned when they were in bed.

Mothers too have often been forced to go out to work. Latch key kids, day care centres and drop off sites are the norm. Rarely do you see children playing. Instead they spend time alone in their rooms with their color televisions, videos and DVD's. They text and e-mail endlessly on their mobile phones and computers and yet cannot hold a meaningful conversation face to face.

In our fast pace society there's no time to enjoy simple pleasures and quality family life has gone out of the window.

Long gone are the days when families sat down together to eat freshly cooked nutritious meals containing seasonal fruits and vegetables and watched the same programme on a shared televison. They read, played games together and actually communicated.

Admittedly advances in technology have made life much easier but not necessarily happier. Theoretically machinery should have given us more freedom and yet everyone rushes around unable to spare the time to simply relax. They search instead for money to buy "things" and products to make us look younger. It seems growing old gracefully is a thing of the past and we all seek eternal youth.

Possessions appear more important than people and relationships and life pass most by without us ever appreciating the best things in life are free.

Stress and mental health issues are a big part of modern society.

Toxic chemicals are now found everywhere. We cannot escape them and even though we know they are a danger to our health, more and more are produced. According to the Environment Working Group most of the toxins which are detrimental to our health are found in our food supply.

Meals are now eaten on the run, often prepacked and microwaved. Fast food is the norm. Our appetite for quick fixes far outweighs our desire for nutritionally complete food.

These days unless you eat organic produce the only ingredients you can guarantee to get in your food will be a mixture of fertilizers, pesticides, insecticides, preservatives, colourings, flavourings, growth hormones, anti-biotics and toxic chemicals from the packaging. They build up an unnatural cocktail inside us, unquestionably dangerous, potentially deadly.

Is it any wonder we worry for our long term health.

Serious illnesses such as cancer and heart disease are on the increase. Depression and suicide are rife. Crime and violence triggered by alcohol and drug abuse is common place and people are afraid to go out alone in many areas especially when darkness falls.

Many children suffer challenging behaviour most of which can be attributed to their diet. How many do you know who have a change in personality after they've eaten highly coloured, sweetened or flavoured food and drink?

Sweets and sugary drinks are often sufficient to trigger hyperactivity so what do we do? Instead of removing them from the diet we drug our children to calm them down.

What has happened to us?

We can't turn back the clock and undo the progress already made. We wouldn't want to but we can choose to reduce the toxic load which the food and personal care industries have planted on us, often without our knowledge.

Did you realise the personal and skin care industry can use up to 10,500 highly unregulated synthetic chemicals in their products, none of which have ever been tested for long term health effects either individually or in combination? Do you even care?

If you don't, you should. If not for yourself then for your children. After all, something is happening to them and it appears they need all the help they can get!