The Power of a positive community
Table of Contents
1. The Science Behind the Problem
2. The Struggle
3. A New Path
4. The Transformation
5. The Diverging Paths
6. The Lesson
1. The Science Behind the Problem
Studies show that kids and teens today spend an average of 7 hours per day in front of screens. Research from the Journal of Adolescence (Twenge et al., 2019) links excessive screen time to increased loneliness, depression, and anxiety. Meanwhile, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2020) reports that only 24% of kids aged 6-17 get the recommended 60 minutes of physical activity per day. This lack of movement not only affects physical health but also mental well-being.
Psychologist Carol Dweck (2006) found that children with a growth mindset—the belief that abilities can improve with effort—are more likely to embrace challenges, persist through difficulties, and achieve greater success. Without movement, positive role models, and real-world peer interactions, kids risk falling into cycles of self-doubt, stagnation, and isolation.
2. The Struggle
Leo stared at the screen, his fingers hovering over the controller. The game should have felt fun, but it didn’t. It never really did anymore. It was just something to pass the time.
His parents called from the kitchen, telling him to go outside, to move, to do something. But where? With who? His old friends barely texted back anymore, and whenever they did, it was just about another game to play, another screen to sit in front of.
He glanced at the clock. Five hours had slipped by unnoticed.
That feeling settled in his chest again—restlessness, boredom, loneliness all wrapped into one. He thought about turning the game off but didn’t know what to do next. So he didn’t.
Across town, Maya pulled out her phone and scrolled. She wasn’t looking for anything in particular—just something to make the time pass. The faces on her screen smiled, laughed, posed, but she knew most of it wasn’t real. Her own posts were carefully filtered, only showing the best moments, hiding everything else.
Lately, she had started feeling invisible in her own life. Like she was just… existing.
She sighed and shut her phone off. There had to be something more than this.
And then there was Ethan.
Ethan never questioned whether there was something more. He was content. Content to stay inside, content to let the days blend together, content to exist in digital worlds where nothing changed except his rank on a leaderboard. His parents worried. His teachers worried. But he didn’t. Because this was normal, wasn’t it?
3. A New Path
It started with a flyer. Maya’s mom had left it on the kitchen counter: Urban Youth Park - Movement, Growth, Community.
She almost ignored it. Another place to work out? That didn’t sound like her thing. But something about it stuck in her mind. Maybe it was the words community or growth. Maybe it was because, deep down, she knew she needed both.
Leo’s story was different. His cousin dragged him there. “You sit inside too much,” she had said. “You need to move. Trust me.”
He almost refused. Almost made an excuse. But something told him to go. And so, for the first time in a long time, he did.
Ethan? He didn’t see the flyer. And if he had, he wouldn’t have cared.
4. The Transformation
The first thing Leo noticed was the energy in the air. The gym wasn’t like school, where people kept to their own groups. Kids were laughing, running, jumping off walls, cheering for each other. A group huddled around one kid about to try a jump.
“Come on, man, you got this.”
Leo had never seen that before. People wanting someone else to succeed like it was their own win.
Maya’s experience was different but just as powerful. At first, she hung back, unsure of what to do. Then a coach came up to her, smiling. “You ever tried a vault before?”
“No,” she admitted. “I don’t think I can.”
“That’s okay,” the coach said. “No one’s good at something the first time they try. Let’s break it down.”
And just like that, she was learning. Not just how to vault, but how to fail and try again. How to move through fear instead of letting it stop her.
5. The Diverging Paths
Leo and Maya kept coming back. With every week, they grew stronger—not just physically, but mentally.
Maya started raising her hand in class. She applied for leadership roles. Years later, she became a mentor herself, coaching the next generation of kids who felt just like she once did.
Leo built real friendships, ones that didn’t disappear when the Wi-Fi cut out. He learned resilience, and when life threw challenges at him, he tackled them head-on—just like he had learned to do at the gym.
And Ethan?
Ethan kept playing games. He stayed inside. Years passed, and his world stayed small.
One day, he saw an old friend—Leo—on social media. Leo was coaching, leading, traveling. Living.
Ethan closed the app. He went back to his game.
6. The Lesson
Parkour was never just about the movement. It was about learning to trust yourself, to push past doubts, to support and be supported.
Leo found friends who actually cared. Who cheered for him not because of what he could do, but because they wanted him to win at life.
Maya found confidence she didn’t know she had. Not just in the gym, but outside of it too. She started raising her hand in class, speaking up, taking chances she never would have before.
Ethan… stayed where he was.
The screens weren’t gone entirely—but for Leo and Maya, they didn’t control them anymore. They had found something better. Something real.
A community.
Our Community is Your Community
If you’re looking for a place where your child can build confidence, stay active, and be surrounded by positive, growth-oriented peers, **Urban Youth Park is the place to be.**
Come in for a trial class and experience the movement, the mindset, and the community for yourself.
References
- Twenge, J. M., et al. (2019). “Associations Between Screen Time and Lower Psychological Well-Being Among Children and Adolescents: Evidence From a Population-Based Study.” Journal of Adolescence.
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2020). “Youth Physical Activity Guidelines.”
- Dweck, C. S. (2006). Mindset: The New Psychology of Success.
