Traditional games bring joy and beauty at SOTS
Nnasaretha Kgamanyane | Wednesday March 8, 2017 18:00
The event was just a rewind to some decades back when playtime used to be loaded with fun. At the time playing was not only good for physique but also was also cheap.
Gone are those good old days when you would never hear of a child being obese or suffering from diseases that at the time were known to be affecting adults.
This was because most of the games in one way or the other helped the youth with exercise. They also promoted socialising amongst communities unlike currently where a child can isolate him or herself from his or her peers. Most of the games played these days are technology based.
Young children used to spend their days outside playing all kinds of traditional games such as koi, batho safe, dibeke, diketo, morabaraba, hide and seek, etc.
These games were played in groups where children would gather in teams, compete and have fun. During the event, the attendees including elders competed according to their dikgotla (wards) reminiscing over their childhood days. The games were fun, and entertaining.
Amongst the ladies, chakachaka seemed to be the most favourite even though they could not skip more than 10 times.
Even though it seems so easy to the naked eye, this game needs deep concentration and too much energy as one is expected to skip interchanging their legs inside the wool that is normally held by two people who stand opposite to each other.
Some of the koi songs that took the crowd back in the days were aeroplane and cuti la malengisa. It was refreshing to see Batswana playing those games with joy painted all over their faces as they remember their youthful days.
On the other hand, the youngsters showed determination to learn from their parents even though some of them were struggling to keep with their pace and stamina.