The world can be a lonely place. Even on the school playground, one can find himself or herself surrounded by their peers, but feeling alone. In many ways, the playground is a microcosm of the community.
We often get so caught up in what we are doing, and who we are with, that we fail to notice those around us who might not have anyone to be with. As adults, this manifests itself during rides on public transit when we fail to notice someone sitting alone, and offer them a greeting. It shows when we sit in airport terminals and fail to notice lone travelers because we are engrossed in our devices. It shows in the workplace when we fail to notice the coworker eating lunch alone. When we think of it that way, it’s easy to see how children could become so focused on their game of tag or soccer that they fail to notice the lone child standing on the side and watching all of the action go on without them.
Maura Tyler, a second-grade student at Asheville Catholic School, is one student who took notice. Not only did she notice, but she decided to do something about it. Maura noticed that some of her fellow students sometimes had no one to play with during recess. For one reason or another, they did not get into the game of capture the flag, the swingset was full, and the basketball game had two even teams.
Maura noticed that no one else seemed to be aware that some of their peers were without a playmate as they continued on with their games. Her heart went out to these fellow students, and she began to formulate a solution.
“At first I thought about creating a club called ‘The Friendship Club’ to help other students make friends. When I talked to my parents about it, we thought of having a ‘buddy bench’ on the playground,” she says.
The buddy bench is a special bench where students can go when they have no one to play with. Other students who see someone on the buddy bench are encouraged to go over and offer to play with any student sitting there. Maura sold rocks to her family and friends to raise the $78 she needed to purchase the buddy bench. She recently brought the bench to Asheville Catholic School to place on the playground.
Principal Mike Miller praised Maura for her ability to see a problem and then do something about it. “It’s rare these days to come across people who identify a problem, and then work to do something about it. Maura sacrificed her own time and energy to help others make friends and have fun on the playground. Too many people want to complain and place blame. You just don’t see as much of that self-sacrificial mindset anymore.”
Maura says she wants everyone to know that the buddy bench is a place where anyone can find a friend. That’s something we need a lot more of nowadays.
— Contributed by Mike Miller