Bring back memories?

CDC funded page

Not a CDC funded Page

TO ALL THE KIDS WHO SURVIVED the 1930's 40's, 50's, 60's and 70's !! First, we survived being born to mothers who smoked and/or drank while they were pregnant. They took aspirin, ate blue cheese dressing, tuna from a can, and didn't get tested for diabetes. Then after that trauma, we were put to sleep on our tummies in baby cribs covered with bright colored lead-based paints. We had no childproof lids on medicine bottles, doors or cabinets and when we rode our bikes, we had no helmets, not to mention, the risks we took hitchhiking. As infants & children, we would ride in cars with no car seats, booster seats, seat belts or air bags. Riding in the back of a pick up on a warm day was always a special treat. We drank water from the garden hose and NOT from a bottle. We shared one soft drink with four friends, from one bottle and NO ONE actually died from this. We ate cupcakes, white bread and real butter and drank koolade made with sugar, but we weren't overweight because . WE WERE ALWAYS OUTSIDE PLAYING! We would leave home in the morning and play all day, as long as we were back when the streetlights came on. No one was able to reach us all day. And we were O.K. We would spend hours building our go-carts out of scraps and then ride down the hill, only to find out we forgot the brakes. After running into the bushes a few times, we learned to solve the problem. We did not have Playstations, Nintendo's, X-boxes, no video games at all, no 150 channels on cable, no video movies or DVD's, no surround-sound, CD's or Ipods, no cell phones!, no personal computers , no Internet or chat rooms....... WE HAD FRIENDS and we went outside and found them! We fell out of trees, got cut, broke bones and teeth and there were no lawsuits from these accidents. We ate worms and mud pies made from dirt, and the worms did not live in us forever. We were given BB guns for our 10th birthdays, made up games with sticks and tennis balls and, although we were told it would happen, we did not put out very many eyes. We rode bikes or walked to a friend's house and knocked on the door or rang the bell, or just walked in and talked to them! Little League had tryouts and not everyone made the team. Those who didn't had to learn to deal with disappointment. Imagine that!! The idea of a parent bailing us out if we broke the law was unheard of. They actually sided with the law! These generations have produced some of the best risk-takers, problem solvers and inventors ever! The past 50 years have been an explosion of innovation and new ideas. We had freedom, failure, success and responsibility, and we learned HOW TO DEAL WITH IT ALL! If YOU are one of them . . CONGRATULATIONS!

Comments

Re: Bring back memories?

Submitted by wldhrt13 on Thu, 2006-11-02 - 14:47

Shawn !!! I am so impressed with you!!! and all that you wrote! As I was reading everything I kept saying "Yes! Yes!" I especially identified with the part about being outside all the time. My mum, she even in the winter would bundle us all up, like in that movie a Christmas story, and she'd open up the door and sort of gently push us out. But after 5 minutes of whining that it was too cold, we would head down the steps into the yard, and be building snow igloos and forts and snowmen, making snowangels, and how could I forget my brothers sending ice-slush balls in my face (God Bless Bill Cosby for creating that skit, funn-nee as hell) And you know ironically, in the end, we had some of the best times of our childhoods when she "forced" us outside. AND my family never used to lock the door while we were inside, even overnight. I DO remember just walking into my friends house!!! To add onto what you wrote, birthday parties were not corporate events held at super fun centers. They were just a bunch of neighborhood kids + family sitting round the kitchen table with a homemade cake; and plenty of games like pin the tail on the donkey! And I agree with you on the little league tryouts, we learned to try harder to make the team next year and we learned to handle disappointment! And my parents made me STAY on the team til the season was finished, even though I hated it, because they thought it was important to teach to keep a commitment to something. My parents spanked me when I was really bad and washed my mouth out with soap if I swore (course it didn't change my sailor mouth) but I did get to try out the tastes of all the different kinds...(Dove was so much better than say Irish Spring!) Nevermind no cable TV? We only had ONE television and it would be on the news so my parents could watch it! Maybe when we were lucky, an after-school special or a Seasonal TV special like Charlie Brown's Christmas or the Wizard of Oz. The only time we could watch TV was on Saturday morning! what a novel idea to let kids read books instead of turning into TV dinner-vegetables. I remember walking to school by myself most of my grammar school years, until Adam Walsh went missing and turned up murdered. what a different world it was in many ways. There is a book you need to read which I just read and loved! It is called, "The Epidemic: The Rot of American Culture, Absentee and Permissive Parenting and the Resultant Plague of Joyless Selfish Children". It speaks more deeply about this I am just soooooo impressed with this post Shawn, I am not kidding, this is like publish-able (is that even a word). A lot more people would get joy reading this as I did. You should type this up and disseminate it somehow in your ministry! People will totally connect with this!!!Maybe even use it as a sermon (that's what Catholic's call it when the priest does his talkin') I am serious!!! this was the best post ever!!!thanks so much for bringing me back Shawny! :) God Bless you!

Re: Re: Bring back memories?

Submitted by Rev.Shawn on Sat, 2006-11-04 - 12:13

Thank you for your comments as well as the additons. I always liked Ivory, it had a pleasant refreshing taste. Palmolive was another story however. (YUCK) A friend emailed that to me and yes I have incorperated parts of it whe I speak to people at the recovery house I work at, as well as the rescue mission. I sometimes wonder if our society has not lost more than we think, we have more gadgets, but are we really happier?

Re: Re: Re: Bring back memories?

Submitted by tookool1965 on Wed, 2006-11-15 - 20:46

I remember the day`s growing up in martinez ,cali. ya,the days when it wasn`t a bother for neighbors to look out for each others kid`s ,when our parents had each other`s phone no.`s.You did not have to worry about creeps rolling into the old hood ,becuase everybody was like a large family ,If you remember we took care of our own there wasn`t know time outs or mommy will go buy you a toy if you stay quiet or rewarding your kids when there bad.Yes we have definitly lost a bunch.We gave up undisposable and hard for laziness and disposable.We`ve givin` it up.To many people want to have kids but don`t want to except responsebility for them when it`s right ,but when it`s wrong ,to say it`s ok to go break windows in the neighbor hood,But when the kid get`s caught the child is not held responsible for his mischief,were as back in the day we as kids were held responsible for our actions.we got in trouble not our parents.thanks tookool