> REMEMBER WHEN: > >Mom was at home when the kids got home from school; > >when nobody owned a purebred dog; > >when a quarter was a decent allowance, and another > >quarter a huge bonus; > >when you'd reach into a muddy gutter for a penny; when all of > >your male teachers wore neckties and female teachers had > >their hair done and wore high heels; > >when you got your windshield cleaned, oil checked and gas > >pumped without asking, all for free, every time, and, you didn't > >pay for air, and, you got trading stamps to boot. > > > >When it was considered a great privilege to be taken out to dinner > >at a real restaurant with your parents; when the worst thing you could > >do at school was smoke in the bathrooms, flunk a test or chew gum; > >when a '57 Chevy was everyone's dream car, to cruise, peel out, lay > >rubber or watch submarine races; and people went! steady and girls wore a > >class ring with an inch of wrapped yarn so it would fit her finger. > > > >And no one ever asked where the car keys were because they were > >always in the car, in the ignition, and the doors were never locked. > >And you got in big trouble if you accidentally locked the doors at home, > >since no one ever had a key. > > > >Remember lying on your back on the grass with your friends and > >saying things like "That cloud looks like a ... " > > > >Remember jumping waves at the ocean for hours in that cold > >water; and playing baseball with no adults to help kids with the > >rules of the game because baseball was not a psycho! logical group > >learning experience, it was a game. > > > >Remember when stuff from the store came without safety caps and > >hermetic seals because no one had yet tried to poison a perfect > >stranger. > > > >And with all our progress, don't you wish, just once, you could slip > >back in time a! nd savor the slower pace and share it with the children > >of today. > > > >Remember when being sent to the principal's office was nothing > >compared to the fate that awaited a misbehaving student at home. > >Basically, we were in fear for our lives, but it wasn't because of drive > >by shootings, drugs, gangs, etc. Our parents and grandparents were a > >much bigger threat! > > > >But we all survived because their love was greater than the threat. > > > >Go back with me for a minute.... > > > >Before the Internet or the MAC ... before semi automatics and crack > >before SEGA or Super Nintendo... Way back .... I'm talking about hide > >and go seek at dusk, red light, green light, kick the can, playing > >kickball & dodgeball until your porch light came on ... and mother may I? > >red rover, hula hoops, roller skating to music, running through the > >sprinkler... > > > >And... > > > >Catching lightning bugs in a jar; Christmas morning; your first day > >of ! school; bedtime prayers and goodnight kisses; climbing trees; getting > >an ice cream off the ice cream truck; a million mosquito bites and > >sticky fingers; jumping on the bed; pillow fights; running till you were > >out of breath' laughing so hard your stomach hurt; being tired from > >playing; your first crush...remember that? > > > >I'm not finished yet.... > > > >Kool-aid ! was the drink of summer; toting your friends on your handle > >bars; wearing your new shoes on the first day of school and class > >field trips. > > > >Didn't that feel good, just to go back and say, Yeah, I remember > >that! > > > >There's nothing like the good old days. They were good then, and > >they're good now when we think about them. Share some of these > >thoughts with a friend who can relate, then share it with someone > >that missed out on them. > > > >I want to go back to the time when............ > > > >Decisions were made by going "eeny-meeny-miney-mo" and mis! takes were > >corrected by simply exclaiming, "do it over!" "Race issue" meant arguing > >about who ran the fastest; money issues were handled by whoever was the > >banker in "Monopoly;" catching fireflies could happily occupy an entire > >evening; and it wasn't odd to have two or three "best" friends. Being > >old referred to anyone over 20 and 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; getting a foot of snow was a dream come true; 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; > >and older siblings were the worst tormentors, but also the fiercest > >protectors. > >If you can remember most or all of these, then you have LIVED!!!! > >Pass this on to anyone who may need a break from their "grown up" life. > > > > »§«:*´`³¤³´`*:»«§:*´`³¤³´`*:»§«:*´`³¤³´`*:»§«:*´`³¤³´`*: »§« My friends tell me that I refuse to grow up, but I know they're just jealous because they don't have pajamas with feet. Richiele 'Marie <*}}>< MSN [email protected] »§«:*´`³¤³´`*:»«§:*´`³¤³´`*:»§«:*´`³¤³´`*:»§«:*´`³¤³´`*:»§«