The value of play

Nowadays children do not have enough free time, due to their rigid school program. Children enjoy playing and learning through different games but why children are nowadays more anxious and depressed?

The majority of children in modern societies suffer from anxiety and depression and lack of imagination and creativity.  Children need time, love and devotion and their parents or teachers  must not underestimate the importance of play. According to the American Journal of Play children's play time has declined but free play is of paramount importance for a child for many reasons.  Children need to play because through this process they develop their creativity and their imagination. Moreover, children feel happy and pass their free time insouciantly, without worries and responsibilities. Additionally, game gives them the opportunity to escape from their routine and is  beneficial not only for their health but also for their emotional development.

More specifically, play is undoubtedly beneficial for every child because does not entertain himself through play but also develops his social skills and psychological needs. For instance, children who have speech impairments can improve their difficulties via playing because they do not feel stressed and they are free of any adult supervision. Additionally, children trough playing develop their social skills and learn how to behave. Needless to say that minors become more sociable as they play with their peers with whom they have so many things in common. Furthermore, children who do not have siblings learn how to share their things with others and how not to be the centre of attention. Children become more tolerant to any kind of difference. For instance, children can play together without caring if  their playmate is black or white, discrimination and racism are two words completely unknown to them.

It has been shown that play is the best preferable way for children to spend their free time because through play they relax, feel more happy and create lifetime memories. 

Yes or No this is the big question

After months of negotiations, Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras called a referendum on the country’s bailout programme, asking from people to  vote yes or no to austerity and economic measures, but Europe insists that “No”  could not bring a prosperous future for Greek people and will lead the country to political and economic isolation.

On the one side Greek government expressing overtly a “No” strategy believing that it is the right time to put an end to austerity and poverty. As Alexis Tsipras said Greece is calling to vote for its future and that he will respect every democratic decision, but he says that if Greeks approve the EU’s aid plan, Syriza will resign. “Democracy deserved a boost in euro-related matters. We just  delivered it. Let people decide”, wrote in his personal accounts on Twitter, Greece’s finance minister Yanis Varoufakis.

On the other side, ECB and IMF argue that the fear of Grexit is more eminent than never and urge yes vote. They put the blame on Greek government saying that the Greek team was insufficient during negotiations in Brussels. Moreover, European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker has said he feels betrayed by Alexis Tsipras and believes that Greek will say yes to Europe yes to development. Additionally, Great Britain, Germany and France have a common stance on Greek crisis and try to imagine the best plan for the safety of Eurozone.

The truth is that the Greek economy  goes from bad to worse and the economic crisis is getting stronger and stronger and people have done many economic sacrifices for a stronger tomorrow, but this has never come. While the International Monetary Fund  is insisting that Greece needs to adopt new austerity measures, more than one million people live under the poverty line. According to the Hellenic Statistics Authority (ELSTAT), Greece’s unemployment rate is continuing to increase, reaching 27.6 % percent in June 2015. It is very sad that 21,000 people are homeless,  the vast majority of them is young people of working age.  According to sociologists and political scientists a country with these percentages goes to chaos and social turmoil and they argue that a social change is needed. Moreover, the increased number of suicides in Greece in the three-year period between 2009 and 2011 represents a trend that shows no sign of economic development. However, it is worth noting that, despite the new negative inflation,   the market basket will be heavier from January 2014 while thousands of our fellow citizens are unable to buy basic consumer goods. Although new taxes to be imposed have been voted out last year and calculated the new state budget , it does not exclude the possibility of increases and new taxes or, if not met the fiscal targets or has not been voted in its entirety the budget.

Even if the banks are closed and after the imposition of capital controls, the majority of people are confused, afraid and they do not know how to vote, but they try to take the best decision not only for the present but also for the future generations. A major political compromise from all sides is needed in order to remain Europe united and strong.