When I was younger....
By hookfan
@hookfan (447)
April 1, 2007 1:54pm CST
I remember when my parents and my grandparents would tell me about life when they were younger and how hard things were for them. I used to listen intently as my grandmother told me stories of her life as a young girl, how far she had to go to school.
I think back on my own childhood, how often we would move, living on a farm (which I thoroughly enjoyed), going to a country school. I think of how we could play outside as long as we wanted and only had to call home from a friend's house if we were going to be late. Even living in the city that was all we had to do. I look outside at the few kids playing outside our flat and wonder where the rest of the kids are. All sitting inside watching telly I suppose.
Seems such a shame when it's such a glorious day outside. Even I was outside for most of it, soaking up the sun.
Just a reflection I suppose. Life wasn't easy, but we sure knew how to fun - without computers, playstations and telly. We had bugs, frogs, bikes and each other:)
6 people like this
13 responses
@lightningMD (5931)
• United States
1 Apr 07
i totally agree..my grandparents had great stories..my grandmother was 100 when she passed away last year...even my mom had to carry water from the creek and use an outhouse as a kid..sometimes i wish i could go backwards and live in those times...i limit the amount of time my 9 yr old daughter can watch tv...1 hour a day then i boot her butt outside...i love to work in the garden or take her swimming...anything outside is good...
@mummymo (23706)
•
2 Apr 07
hookfan I completely understand where you are coming from but I totally believe that todays world is (or at least seems) to be a far more dangerous one! I personally hate to let my 2 out to play further than I can see them and they have to check in at regular intervals! I do feel guilty about this but I am sure I would feel even worse if someone snatched them!
@Perry2007 (2229)
• Philippines
2 Apr 07
Gee... I share your memoirs...HOw this age of electronics and gatgets change the lives of kids today, we have no TV yet before, if we wanted to watch, we needed to be in our neighbors sala... duh.. now it seems the kids can't live without them.
@varunoberoi (266)
• India
2 Apr 07
well you know dude...those days are gone...and i dont think they are gonna come back
@Lavera1 (896)
• United States
1 Apr 07
Yes I surely remember those days of my youth, Hook. And I also remember my mom and dad telling us how they had to walk long distances to school even in the snow. I don't remember my grand parents telling us about their youth.
When we were kids we'd do a lot of playing outside. And whenever it rained we'd open our mouthes and dring it. And when our toys would break up we'd make our own toys. Me and my sister would make dolls out of glass soda bottles using blond rope for their hair. And we'd use our mom's curling solution to set the hair with paper twists made from brown paper bags. We would play with paper dolls too.
Then my brothers would make their own scooters from broken skates and wooden boards.
We had to have a lot of imagination then.
And I also remember hide and go seek and dodge ball. I hated getting hit. Ouch!
@kurtbiewald (2625)
• United States
2 Apr 07
yeah my grandma used to tell me about her childhood
her mom was too poor to feed her
her and her sisters were sent out to work on 3 separate farms as helpers just so they could eat
she told me at Christmas time they each got an orange
they were lucky though, I heard yesterday one guy was sayin for xmass his family was so poor he got an apple core and a lump of coal
but he was lucky , cuz somebody else's parents was so poor he only got a note that said COAL in his stocking
@academic2 (7000)
• Uganda
2 Apr 07
Yeah Hookfan, I agree no less-the good things in life seem to dwell in posterity-my own parents used to tell me how they survived devastating famines where men would postpone sleep until they hear their wives snoring then they would sneek stealthily to drink a bit of the reserve soup left for the next day! Today you seem to be in better times, but I can tell you, your own children tomorrow would listen to you and wonder how stone age your life seemed to be!
@banta78 (4326)
• India
2 Apr 07
Yeah i too can recollect something similar from my childhood days. I too used to go to the countryside and have lived there, play in the fields, pluck fruits and flowers. I too used to entertain myself reading fairy tales, comic books, detective stores. To play with siblings & friends. I too am not gadget freak. I don't watch too much telly though i use computer more often now. Like you said i also enjoy nature be it soaking in the sun, enjoying rainfall, singing my favourite songs, playing with my little nephew. I enjoy simple pleasures life has to offer. good luck. :)
@ElicBxn (63235)
• United States
1 Apr 07
I remember my mom telling me how one time she had to stay with some relative & she ran away back to her home or grandmothers across the field between the 2 houses. Said field is now part of the Garden State Parkway. How her dad would shoot rabbits from the garden to keep them from eating the vegies & they'd eat the rabbit - this was during the depression, even tho my grandfather was well employed for ConEd during it. How my grandmother had to prove she was born in the U.S. so she could work during WWI because her mother was from Germany.
I remember playing outside most the day, chasing the dog, playing "pretend" with friends. Or base ball with the neighbor boys (I was the only gal on the team because I pitched so well.)
I think kids today spend too much time in front of the TV, either watching it or playing video games.
@chubby3367 (322)
• United States
2 Apr 07
I truly agree with that.Even we have comforts in all ways,I don't think joying life like the olden days.Now this busy lives makes every body hopeless some times.Always I would say "old is gold".
@akopoto (177)
• Philippines
2 Apr 07
To tell you the truth, I'm one of those kids that shifted from playing outside and spending time playing under the sun to playing computer games inside our home. I'm not really aware that I abandoned the good times outside playing in our backyard. We used to fly kites but now we just stay indoors and play or consoles and computers. I really miss playing outdoors sometimes.
@globaleflyer (29)
• Canada
2 Apr 07
hi
I love the old days to but just take a look at a 5 five year old operating a computer. its amazing. see how smart he/she is. Kids are much more smarter than they were years ago by watching tv and using the computer. Just emagine the future!!!
also sell your stuff for free on www.globaleflyer.com
thank you
@chaklipakli (133)
• United States
2 Apr 07
life is a lot tougher for youths as was 20 yrs ago...especially in my country...where the population is overflowing ....and seats for undrgraduate programmes are so few. we get up at 5 in the morning...go to school...the school ends at 1 afternoon. we come home...eat our lunch n within half an hour...we have to go for coaching classes which continues for 3 hours at strech. we come back home...n then complete our school assignments as well as the work given by the tutor.(usually consisting of fifty full lengh questions...per day each subject.)...n inspite of doing this for the last four years...i stand nowhere in the competition!!...im too depressed to write anything optimistic...sorry for this crap response.
