The more stories I write, the more one thing comes to my attention, just how little I was paying attention. I'm thinking about when I was growing up and the things around me. In talking with my brothers and my sister I have learned there was a lot I missed. How could I have been so unaware ? I suppose I was just focused on the things that interested me at the time. My brothers being four and six years older than I had naturally moved on a bit by the time I was old enough to " hang " with. My sister ? Well, she is a girl you know so not so much fun. Oh, we had our time together when we were both younger, playing mud pies and such, but not so much later on.
When I was a kid almost everything to do fun was outdoors. Indoors you could read, there was coloring books, you had toys and two channels on the television. I don't remember listening to the radio much. Yes, all the fun stuff was outdoors. I do remember playing with toy cars and trucks in the dirt out back. I make all kinds of roads and crawled around for hours on end. As I remember it, I was usually alone. It wasn't until I was older that I was allowed to leave the yard. Following that I was allowed to be within shouting distance. We didn't have street lights on the dirt road where I lived, it was be home by suppertime. Over the years there were other kids my age on that road and sometimes not. I'd say the neighborhood was " fluid " to use a modern term. That was because there was a " welfare " house on the end of it. That's what we called it back then, now it's affordable housing or section eight.
What I have come to see is how much I missed. There was an entire " abandoned " settlement almost in my backyard. I never knew a thing about that until years later. Northwest was the woods. That's what I always thought but found out that it was really a village at one time. I had all that history to explore and never even took a peek ! Oh, I explored a few old barns that was in those woods, I saw some grave markers and some other things but never really gave it a thought. I played in soak hide dreen. I was told that Indians soaked their hides in that water before tanning them. I never looked for any artifacts though. Fact is, history was all around me. Now, I'm just amazed that I could have ignored all that. Is that what they call growing up ? If so, it stinks.
I'd say I was really isolated in my youth. I wasn't really aware of that. I had my own little world. I didn't live uptown so my world was spread out a bit. Houses weren't all in a row like those upstreeters were. I didn't have sidewalks to skate on, that old tar and chip road was the best I had. No playgrounds or basketball courts for me, not unless I went uptown and that didn't happen often. I went " upstreet " to go shopping or to go to school. Like all kids the older I got the more freedom I was given. I did begin to roam and hang out upstreet. I still had best be home for supper though or call. I think it was that freedom to roam that caused the distraction. If I had stayed to the neighborhood I probably would have become aware and explored it further. I guess I am like the Waltons, only I left the mountain. I was drawn away by the lure of the big city ! Yes those bright lights beckoned to me like a moth to the flame alright.
I wonder how many others feel the way I do ? There was so much history that I could have learned and explored. I had " guides " right there too. Great Grandfather Lester would surely have known all about Northwest and that little settlement. There were quite a few old timers that would have been glad to share their knowledge of the past with me. What discoveries might I have made if I had only looked ? That is what bothers me now. If I had only paid closer attention. Well, maybe next time.
When I was a kid almost everything to do fun was outdoors. Indoors you could read, there was coloring books, you had toys and two channels on the television. I don't remember listening to the radio much. Yes, all the fun stuff was outdoors. I do remember playing with toy cars and trucks in the dirt out back. I make all kinds of roads and crawled around for hours on end. As I remember it, I was usually alone. It wasn't until I was older that I was allowed to leave the yard. Following that I was allowed to be within shouting distance. We didn't have street lights on the dirt road where I lived, it was be home by suppertime. Over the years there were other kids my age on that road and sometimes not. I'd say the neighborhood was " fluid " to use a modern term. That was because there was a " welfare " house on the end of it. That's what we called it back then, now it's affordable housing or section eight.
What I have come to see is how much I missed. There was an entire " abandoned " settlement almost in my backyard. I never knew a thing about that until years later. Northwest was the woods. That's what I always thought but found out that it was really a village at one time. I had all that history to explore and never even took a peek ! Oh, I explored a few old barns that was in those woods, I saw some grave markers and some other things but never really gave it a thought. I played in soak hide dreen. I was told that Indians soaked their hides in that water before tanning them. I never looked for any artifacts though. Fact is, history was all around me. Now, I'm just amazed that I could have ignored all that. Is that what they call growing up ? If so, it stinks.
I'd say I was really isolated in my youth. I wasn't really aware of that. I had my own little world. I didn't live uptown so my world was spread out a bit. Houses weren't all in a row like those upstreeters were. I didn't have sidewalks to skate on, that old tar and chip road was the best I had. No playgrounds or basketball courts for me, not unless I went uptown and that didn't happen often. I went " upstreet " to go shopping or to go to school. Like all kids the older I got the more freedom I was given. I did begin to roam and hang out upstreet. I still had best be home for supper though or call. I think it was that freedom to roam that caused the distraction. If I had stayed to the neighborhood I probably would have become aware and explored it further. I guess I am like the Waltons, only I left the mountain. I was drawn away by the lure of the big city ! Yes those bright lights beckoned to me like a moth to the flame alright.
I wonder how many others feel the way I do ? There was so much history that I could have learned and explored. I had " guides " right there too. Great Grandfather Lester would surely have known all about Northwest and that little settlement. There were quite a few old timers that would have been glad to share their knowledge of the past with me. What discoveries might I have made if I had only looked ? That is what bothers me now. If I had only paid closer attention. Well, maybe next time.
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