 By Dinah Pearson February 25, 2006
KYSL indoor and outdoor soccer.Church youth groups Wed. & Thurs. nights. Volunteer for a board.(KYI, Youth Court, Hot Shots Paintball, etc.). Weekly small study groups involving self-improvement books, spiritual growth and local interests. (there are many!)Dribblers basketball...play,ref, coach a younger team, keep the book/clock, or just come out and cheer.Join a play or musical.Run a marathon! Go to the movies. Go out for a sports team. We have AMAZING rec league and school athletics. Volunteer at the pet shelter, soup kitchen, or senior center. Help paint backgrounds and make stage props. Learn to swim! Find a study buddy and set a GPA goal for yourself! Play Scrabble with your sister. Get a job. Learn to play an instrument or join a community band. Take up beading. Work out at the Rec. Learn Judo. Bake a cake for the family. Go to the field and throw a football, kick a soccer ball, or hit a baseball. Hike Deer Mountain. Go fishing at Ward Lake. (Don't forget to buy your license!) Have a movie night at your house. Learn to sew, knit, weave, carve, or paint...and own it. Join the debate team. Start the required reading list. Practice the keyboard or piano. Buy a cheap computer and take it apart. Run track or cross country. Wrestle....the list is as vast and colorful as are our youth. To say.... "they look for other ways to create balance, because everyone's doing it, and they're right"..... would be a defeatist cop- out. No, Kayleigh, everyone ISN'T doing it. We need to hold up the youth that make good choices, hold accountable those that do not make good choices, and understand that the problem is NOT in failing to keep our kids externally stimulated. Our community has many choices
out there that do not involve drugs, tobacco or alcohol. Getting
involved is the responsibility of those desiring to make good
choices. For those NOT interested in drug-free activities, having
a million choices wouldn't fix the problem. Dinah Pearson
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