It was a different time in the 50's. You were allowed to leave home with friends or alone with little to no supervision. We just celebrated the 4th of July and a child of the 50's had so much freedom.
I loved visiting my Uncle Tom's farm about 2 miles from my home in Campbell, Ohio. It had all the earmarks of a working farm. A barn, animals, tractor, a garden filled with vegetables and orchards full of fruit trees. My cousins and I used to walk or ride a bike and spend the day. Some days we had hayrides, picked blackberries until our hands were stained with a purple black coating that needed a special soap to remove it. If we were there in the early evening we caught fireflies and put them in jars to light our way, they still fascinate me.
If we stayed home we would walk or ride our bike about 2 miles to Roosevelt Park. Now don't faint, but we went without supervision. We could be gone the whole day as long as our parents knew where we were.
We would pack a lunch, a towel, a change of clothes and 10 cents for admission to the local city pool. I can still smell the pungent odor of chlorine that filled my nostrils and remained on my skin for the rest of the day. We played on the playground, riding swings, the teeter toter, merry go round, and going down the big slide was an adventure. And of course, we did all of these feats of bravery without helmets, shoulder pads, knee pads, mouth guards, etc. It is a wonder we baby boomers lived to tell about it.
Then we would return home for supper, 6pm every night. The end of the day was just as much fun as the beginning. We played hide and seek, duck duck goose, and several other local games. The rule was as soon as the street lights went on, you needed to go home. And don't dare break the rules. If mom or dad didn't come after you , grandma or grandpa would. So that rule was never broken (well maybe on occasion),and if we were really good we had a Dairy Queen in our little town to end the evening. My mother would give us money and we would walk down about a block and get a sundae for my mom, (usually strawberry), and I loved just a plain vanilla cone with the swirl on the top. Oh those summer evenings were such a joy.
We sat on the swing on the front porch, the cool summer breeze cooling your skin from a long day in the sun. In the distance you could hear the train racing down the tracks, and in the city I lived you could smell the smoke from the Youngstown Sheet and Tube, only two blocks away. I am grateful for a keen memory, I am glad to be able to remember those simpler times. It was good to be a child of the 50's. It was a joy to look forward to the next summer adventure.
Enjoy a simple pleasure of childhood this summer, it will surprise your senses and fill you with a peace that only childhood can bring. Take a moment to enjoy a summer storm filled with a lightning show and the roaring sound of thunder, while the soft rain soothes your soul. Swing on a swing, throw a ball and play catch with a child. Spend sometime with a little one to remind you of days gone by, and remember to play like a child, it will do wonders for your spirit.
...inwardly we are being renewed day by day. 2 Corinthians 4:16 NIV
