2004.12.18
Does Anyone Remember?
I remember as a child when I didn’t regard the world as a dangerous place but as a world of adventure…
Does anyone remember when no one locked their front door? I remember as a kid I’d run over to my friend’s house and go straight in without knocking. I remember when no one wore bicycle helmets. We made ramps out of plywood and bricks and I jumped my Huffy with the black and yellow striped banana seat over it and into the yard. More often than not I wiped out.
Sometimes I feel like we’ve lost something between then and now. When I was young, doors were unlocked and the keys were in the ignition. Today we lock our cars, we lock our homes and, by extension, ourselves and our society. A locked door does not say, “Welcome, neighbor!” We lock ourselves away to protect those we love, yet what is the best way to protect them? Security systems and bicycle helmets?
I remember as a child when I didn’t regard the world as a dangerous place but as a world of adventure that was a lot of fun despite cuts, scrapes, bruises and, at least once, a nail through my foot. I’m sure my parents worried about me and sometimes I was told to be more careful, but they never stopped me. “Go outside and play,” my Mom would tell us when we got home from school. I didn’t think much of it then, but I love her for it now.
Categorized: memories thoughts
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3 Responses to “Does Anyone Remember?”
- nonbeing says (January 4th, 2005 at 13:39:13 )
beautiful…
There’s a poet lurking in you somewhere; that was a beautiful post. I also miss that sense of adventure, of seeing the entire world as a great big outdoor game. Fortunately, that lost innocence and wonder can be rediscovered, both within oneself and others. It takes a lot of effort, patience and most importantly, love.You’ve done a great job with your site, i’ll pass by more often, as and when i can.
- dugh says (January 5th, 2005 at 08:29:51 )
thanks!
i actually used to write poetry, but i’m not one to torture others with it (most of it came from the angstish teenage years). i do write music, however, and hope to torture the world with that! you can read some more of my attempts here though nothing there really reflects any serious thoughtfulness.- douglas.nerad » Free Range Kids says (September 4th, 2008 at 07:55:54 )
[...] a long time ago I lamented the fact that children today seem so protected from the world (of mostly imagined danger) that they [...]
