A Glance Back

I was reading my sister’s blog the other day and a post called, ‘Baby Boomers’ made me smile. I reminisced about my childhood and about the way things were, thought about the many things that went on then, for which we are certainly none the worse off.

I think that children today are given too much and don’t have to think enough for themselves. They have grown up in a ‘do it for me’ and ‘have it now’ ethos where the notion of making and doing for yourself and an ‘in good time’ has gone. As a youngster l loved creating things, going out all day with friends on adventures, using my imagination, staging plays, dressing up etc. Life seemed new, brilliant, endless… Ok we had no televisions, video games, DVD’s, stereos etc. in our rooms but we had friends to play over and books! A cardboard box, a patch of backyard and a dripping piece (sandwich) was a day of fun and relative safety. People, children and grown ups were more at ease with themselves and their lives – the world was a simpler and a safer place to be around in. Now it seems much smaller, more dangerous, and has lost its sense of mystery and wonder about life and spirituality.

Don’t get me wrong - I’m not saying it is all bad, my older two are sensitive creative souls who are also adept with technical things which can only serve to help them in the future but, l still feel sad that they have perhaps missed out on a simpler and more self-sufficient way of going about life. Childhood and innocence has been foreshortened by the pressure of commercialism so that sometimes children are almost grotesque imitations of adults when they should still be being children.

Some other things that l feel sad are no longer about:

• The Rag & Bone man- l loved having a peek in his van with mum and her neighbours- l loved getting a wee balloon or sweetie from him too- there was something magical about the whole experience- the vivacious chit chat of ladies queuing and kids desperate for swaps.

• Having your milk delivered to your door in glass bottles- l miss the silver lids- l miss the creamy bit at the top- l remember my mother disgusted with the birds when they’d peck through the lids to get at the cream before us. Young boys could get a job on the delivery trucks, l remember the clatter when the milk was placed on the doorstep- 6 pints each day and full cream!

• I feel saddened/angered that the government did away with allocating milk at primary schools- l loved getting my milk in the mornings (there’s just another thing that my wee boy will not experience).

Over the years the milk containers changed in design, from regular rectangular cartons, to pyramids where you ripped off the top and stuck in your straw but my favorite was the miniature glass bottles- just like the ones on our doorstep at home.

• Tuck-shop at school

• Climbing trees with neighbourhood boys for conkers- l was always a tomboy in that way. Outside all the time ~ at least you can say we were never peely-wally (pale).

• Playing jorries (marbles), again with the boys in the school ground- we used the metal grates for different twists on certain games.

• Tiddley Winks, Dominos, steel roller skates, etc.

A lot of these things are gone now- things that made

the world a nicer place to live, encouraged social interaction within communities and wired deep-rooted memories ~ for me, memories that will last a lifetime.