More fun activities needed

The term stress and its corrective measure, de-stress, have become common expressions on the work place, and rightly so, as the demands of life take a toll on the human body and mind.{{more}}

The tried and tested measures of rest and relaxation have assisted greatly in the de-stressing process. However, fun competitions among employees in the workplace are alternative pressure releasing valves. In recent times, more and more of these activities have been taking place in the workplace.

The Inter Ministries Sports among the many public sector employees, which was initiated a few years ago, seeks to bring the various ministries together through sports, namely Football, Cricket, Table Tennis, Dominoes, Athletics and traditional fun events. Seemingly off the calendar for this year, the eagerly anticipated activity holds a significant place on the agenda of public servants.

Likewise, the annual Inter Financial Institutions Games over the years has done a great job in providing a fun outlet for employees of the banks, and credit unions, and an opportunity for them to showcase their abilities.

Many who once were involved in the sport of Athletics and others just looking for a bit of exercise take advantage of these opportunities to be part of non-competitive, non-threatening occasions, when the emphases are on participation and fun.

The annual Rotary Club South Softball Cricket Competition, in the main, also is injected with a large dosage of fun. That Cricket Competition, still in its infancy, can be fine-tuned so that it will become a ‘can’t miss’ event.

The recently held Inter Church and Media House Table Tennis Competitions organized by the Sean Stanley Table Tennis Academy are perfect examples of true camaraderie among persons who may hardly have had other occasions for interaction and recreation. Probably first of their kind, certainly, these competitions brought out the latent talent in some persons, and pricked the awareness of others’ abilities, whilst creating conduits for clean healthy fun.

Certainly, it is not often that media personnel get too close to each other except at press conferences, as work schedules and the competitiveness of the small Vincentian media market negate such. This is not to say that the current sets of competitions are novel activities, but are worthy of continuation and development.

No one knows how far the recent Media House Table Tennis Competition can go towards greater cohesion among media practitioners here, and how much such meetings of workers from the various media houses can do to embellish inter personal relationships and build staff morale.

Many years ago, the Seymour Firms Cricket Competition, which started in the mid 1970’s, as well as the Firms and Industrial Netball Competitions, had the same objective as we see happening in 2009. Similarly, the Firms and Industrial Table Tennis competition fell into the same mold.

Additionally, with the social landscape of St. Vincent and the Grenadines having changed over time, any source of rekindling the joy of sport and the atmosphere of friendly rivalry must be advanced and preserved.

So, too, is that such friendly competitions tend to bring out families and can only do good in repairing in some cases and gelling in other instances family ties and other bonds.

Many parents struggle to find time to spend quality hours with their children, which adds greater significance to the Rotary competition, which is played on weekends and smacks snuggly into the scheme of promotion of family life.

Of significance, too, is the need for some sort of physical activity among employees who because of the demands of work are generally inactive. Also the importance of wellness to the human bodies and minds adds to the furtherance of such activities and competitions.

It is my hope that other organizations like the Teachers’ Union and others can have intra branch or inter department sporting competitions which certainly will augur well in helping to de- stress its members.

This column is still stressed about the continued presence of the Mound at the Sion Hill Playing Field.

email: kingroache@yahoo.com