Women take a photo in the late afternoon sun during the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival on April 17, 2017 in Indio, California. (Photo by Carlo Allegri/Reuters)

Two carnival revellers masquerade as Leonardo da Vinci's painting “Mona Lisa” pose in St. Mark's Square in Venice, Italy, Sunday, January 31, 2016. Carnival-goers in Venice are being asked by police to momentarily lift their masks as part of new anti-terrorism measures for the annual festivities. (Photo by Domenico Stinellis/AP Photo)

“Sokolica”. Sokolica, Poland. (Photo and caption by Marcin Kęsek/National Geographic Traveler Photo Contest)

ATTENTION! All pictures are presented in high resolution. To see Hi-Res images – just TWICE click on any picture. In other words, click small picture – opens the BIG picture. Click BIG picture – opens VERY BIG picture.

A man pedals his cycle rickshaw during monsoon rains in New Delhi, India August 31, 2016. Normal life was thrown out of gear as heavy rainfall lashed the city Wednesday morning, resulting in waterlogging and traffic jams. (Photo by Cathal McNaughton/Reuters)

Indian Air Force (IAF) cadets march during a graduation parade at the Air Force Academy in Dundigal, on the outskirts of Hyderabad, India, Saturday, June 20, 2020. A total of 123 flight cadets including 19 women officers were commissioned as flying officers on Saturday on successful completion of their training, a press release said. (Photo by Mahesh Kumar A./AP Photo)

A model presents a creation by Indian designer Amit Aggarwal during the FDCI India Couture Week in New Delhi on July 28, 2024. (Photo by Sajjad Hussain/AFP Photo)

A fisherman brings his catch ashore from the Deduru Oya Reservoir, where giant snakeheads have become an invasive species in Walpaluwa village, Sri Lanka, Thursday, October 30, 2025. (Photo by Eranga Jayawardena/AP Photo)

In a simpler time all a child or an adult needed to enjoy the outdoors was a ball and a stick. Or maybe an old tire tied to a high branch to fashion a swing. And the only instruction given to children was to “be home before dark”. Now there are iPads and computers and television screens and shrinking safe public spaces. But despite the distractions and limitations of space, these images show the charm of kicking a ball or skipping rope endures. Sometimes with modifications as a nod to changing times. Here: in this Saturday, June 20, 2015 photo, a boy runs while playing with a motorcycle wheel in Samugari, Ayacucho, Peru. (Photo by Rodrigo Abd/AP Photo)