2001-07-23
feeling kinda
almost a complete and utter crib from a list going around the 'Net these days... sent to me by my best friend. edited to add a few more ideas. (note: if you know where this came from, i'd be happy to give credit.) and yes, hon, i do wish we shared some of these. (except, of course, for the Ice Cream Truck. because that's Bad.) you know what? you're still my best friend. :)
remember when...
before the Internet or even knowing what computers were
before pagers and cell phones and voice mail
before semi automatics and drugs and security systems in schools...
when you could walk home from school or get a ride from a neighbor
before SEGA or Super Nintendo or Atari...
waaaay back...
i'm talkin' bout hide and go seek at dusk.
Red Light, Green Light.
playing kickball & dodgeball until your porch light came on.
Mother May I? and Red Rover
Hula Hoops and jump ropes
running through the sprinkler
Frisbee and tetherball
playing catch in the street in front of the house...
croquet on the front lawn
or badminton in the back yard...
watchin' Saturday Morning cartoonsFat Albert, Road Runner, Bugs Bunny, Smurfs,
Spiderman and Batman and Robin
Wonder Woman and Super Man and Stretch Armstrong
waiting for Christmas morning...
the Easter Bunny and the Tooth Fairy
getting a basket of chocolate or a nickel under your pillow
the first day of school
the first time you had to take the bus alone
bedtime prayers and goodnight kisses and reading under the blanket with a flashlight
climbing trees and scaling rocks
hearing the bells coming down the street, and running out with your allowance to get an ice cream
a million mosquito bites and sticky fingers
sliding down the stairs in pillow cases
jumping down the steps
jumping on the bed until you fell down
jumping on the sofa, launching yourself from the other room
pillow fights
whipped cream battles
running til you were out of breath
swing sets and Jungle Gyms and see saws
Big Wheels and your first real bike, with two wheels
laughing so hard that your stomach hurt and you were afraid of spitting up milk
being tired from playing and having to wash the tar off your feet
your first crush... who seemed like he was from another species
'Susie and Tommy, sitting in a tree, K I S S I N G'
rainy days at school meant drawing and writing in the classroom
making paper fortune tellers and passing notes
remember that?
Kool-aid was the drink of summer, and we all had our own stand
car washes to raise money or just earn allowance
helping rake up the lawn, or earning the right to actually use the mower
riding your friends on your handle bars
helping weed the garden and picking radishes
hanging out in the pool all afternoon
reading every comic book you could get your hands on
wearing your new shoes on the first day of school
trying to find the Right Lunchbox
class field trips and trying to sit next to the right kid on the bus
when nearly everyone's mom was at home when we got home
when a quarter seemed like a fair allowance, and another quarter a miracle
when any parent could discipline any kid, or feed him or use him to carry groceries
and nobody, not even the kid, thought a thing of it
when your parents took you to McDonalds and you were so cool
when being sent to the principal's office was nothing compared to the fate that awaited at home
basically, we were in fear for our lives but it wasn't because of drive-by shootings, drugs or gangs.
our parents and grandparents had much more power.
and some of us are still afraid of 'em.
i want to go back to the time when:
decisions were made by going 'eeny-meeny-miney-mo' or 'rock paper scissors'.
mistakes were corrected by simply exclaiming, 'do over!'
'race issue' meant arguing about who ran the fastest.
money issues were handled by whoever was the banker in Monopoly.
catching the fireflies could happily occupy an entire evening.
it wasn't odd to have two or three 'best' friends.
being old referred to anyone over 20.
the worst thing you could catch from the opposite sex was cooties.
scrapes and bruises were kissed and made better.
it was a big deal to finally be tall enough to ride the 'big people' rides at the amusement park.
snowball fights were an entire day's worth of fun... to say nothing of snow forts.
abilities were discovered because of a 'double-dog-dare'.
spinning around, getting dizzy and falling down was cause for giggles.
the worst embarrassment was being picked last for a team.
water balloons were the ultimate weapon.
older siblings were the worst tormentors, but also the fiercest protectors.
would that we could return to those days... and the luckiest among us are those who haven't lost that sense of innocence and fun.
