When You Were a Kid

Remember when you were a kid and all the old people in your life said, “Back when I was a kid…”?

Back When

I swore I would never say that, but here goes – I believe my childhood was about as good as it gets and far better than that of today’s kids – for myriad reasons,

I was a child in the latter 1950s and the 1960s. Life was simple compared to life today. Phones back then had no dials or pushbuttons. They were plain, black, boxes and required you to pick up the receiver and tell an operator what number you wanted. I only used this kind of phone once, when I was 5 y/o, and it was scary talking to a black thing that talked back. Later phones evolved to have rotary dials, still black, and later into phones with pushbuttons that were available in several models.

Television sets were also smallish, usually black-framed, with rabbit ears used to fine-tune the pictures, which, of course, were in black and white. When color came along it was like mana from heaven! I’ll never forget seeing the Wizard of Oz in sparkling, dazzling color.

Play

As kids we played. We KNEW HOW to play! We played outdoors in all seasons, all weather. We played school, we played with Matchbox toys in the dirt pile behind my best friend’s house, we played Barbies, trading outfits and making up stories where our dolls were the actors. We played with jacks, and paper-dolls; we rode our bikes, and pretended they were horses. We walked everywhere and there was never a fear of being kidnapped.

On summer days, we waited in anticipation for the ice cream man. Nickels and dimes were clutched tight in grubby little hands and handed over for icy prizes. My choice was always Hidden Treasure – a plop of orange ice cream hiding a plastic figure that was basically useless except for the thrill it gave me to discover it.

Remember Fizzies? That’s a long gone treat of small disks dropped into water to create a bubbling liquid. They came in different flavors and colors and were highly coveted among the childhood gang.

We also played impromptu group games including kickball, red rover, and tag. We laughed, we argued, and we had an exhausting, fun-filled time, all designed without the interference of any adults.

Playtime Today

Lately I have had a delirious desire to play. The other day we went into an old-time toy and craft store. It was like strolling into a time warp of wonder and want where the toys, games, and puzzles called out to the child in me. What was completely missing were electronic games, phones, or today’s “toys” that are anything but.

There’s so much more to say about my childhood and the play options it is inspiring in me today. I could go on and on, regaling about other toys and games, and maybe I’ll drop a note or two along the way. And if you have any childhood play memories to share, I would love to learn about them.