Summer will be here before long, and youngsters, released from the rigors of school work, will be set free for a few weeks to do, well, the options are many.
What we don't want to hear is the sad comment from bored children who say, "there's nothing to do."
That might have been sort of true a few years ago, although, as many older folks would point out, there's always something to do, even if it's to help in the kitchen or the yard. But the phrase rings a bit hollow nowadays.
That truism was made apparent for all to see recently when the ribbon was cut on the renovated Pine Bluff Community Center. Located at 1000 S. Ash St., the center is the home to a laundry list of things to do: cooking, reading, art, gym activities, basketball, dance and even boxing.
The center has been pushed along by Mayor Shirley Washington, who, as a former teacher, wants the center to be a place where young people can go to learn these activities. As she might say, kids aren't going to dabble in art, they're going to learn how to make art.
The center won't be open for a while yet, but when it does open, expect there to be some legitimate volunteers helping out and some structure to the activities.
Then, a short drive away, there's the Pine Bluff Aquatic Center where they can swim laps, play, join an exercise class and learn to swim. It's a first-rate center where watchful lifeguards keep an eye on all that goes on.
And then on Main Street there are a couple of options. At the Arts and Science Center for Southeast Arkansas, there are scads of options, from participating in a theatrical production to learning a new art or life skill. It seems that every weekend, something interesting and challenging is going on.
And at the Pine Bluff Library, there are, again, so many things to do and learn. At one time, to put the word "library" together with the word "summer" meant a summer reading program. And that is still a library staple, but with the brand new library, there are many other options for activities: computers, a learning kitchen, a sound room -- all within reach.
This is hardly a complete list of things to do in Pine Bluff. Team sports, church activities, events sponsored by organizations -- the list surely goes on and on.
So you, young person, can say there's nothing to do, but if you look around just a little, you'll find there are so many things to do that you don't have time to do them all. A world of opportunities is out there. You just have to walk out your door to find one.