tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-993649290245605005.post6436186030825236112..comments2024-03-29T07:25:11.925-04:00Comments on Writers Who Kill: Memories of Summers PastJim Jacksonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15090252530437277145noreply@blogger.comBlogger8125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-993649290245605005.post-45579177470745145852016-06-30T16:25:05.011-04:002016-06-30T16:25:05.011-04:00Shari, I'm glad you liked it. I can't imag...Shari, I'm glad you liked it. I can't imagine wearing a uniform. I went to our local school less than a mile away either on the school bus when I was young, and when I got older sometimes I just walked either to or from school because I felt like it. No one worried about my being kidnapped or grabbed by someone. I just heard something on NPR today that kids who have their whole life planned out for them and aren't able to explore on their own, aren't as resilient when problems arise or able to think for themselves as they get older. I think it's going to be on Ted's Talk on NPR this Saturday afternoon in more detail. Gloria Aldenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13581719606924364447noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-993649290245605005.post-38576178403520698162016-06-30T15:53:00.793-04:002016-06-30T15:53:00.793-04:00Gloria, it was a vacation to read about your summe...Gloria, it was a vacation to read about your summer adventures! They seem idyllic to a child of the suburbs like me. I still remember the freedom we had back then - so much unsupervised time, which kids today do not get at all.<br />I remember the smell of chlorine - we spent a lot of time at my grandparents' pool and swinging on a big wooden swing in their back yard, or at the beach, fishing for "shiners" and chasing each other with crabs that we caught.<br />The biggest thing was being out of school and not having to wear the scratchy woolen uniform for a whole blessed three months!Shari Randallhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16425493627354028820noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-993649290245605005.post-43243157376911642412016-06-30T13:40:06.455-04:002016-06-30T13:40:06.455-04:00KM, what a sad story that turned out well when you...<br />KM, what a sad story that turned out well when you were able to go on those trips. I can't imagine what your mother was thinking of to have you crochet all those shade pulls. Seems like more of a punishment than anything else. I'm guessing your mother wasn't happy being a mother and worried about finances and carring for a lot of kids took it out on her older daughters.<br />I'm sure you were a much better mother than she was. Your daughters seem to be doing quite well which proves that. Gloria Aldenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13581719606924364447noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-993649290245605005.post-47392817237301116582016-06-30T12:43:32.435-04:002016-06-30T12:43:32.435-04:00Sounds like wonderful summers in a wonderful child...Sounds like wonderful summers in a wonderful childhood!<br /><br />I'm afraid I spent most of my summers rather resentfully on chores I found boring and then taking care of younger siblings. <br /><br />For some reason, my mother decided all the front windows at the front of the house (at least 12) needed complicated crocheted shade pulls, and I spent countless hours working on them. I had to get a certain amount done before I could go out (and since I wasn't very good at it, I had to rip out and redo a lot) It took me several summers to get them done.<br /><br />When I could go out, I had to take several siblings with me. But that was a better deal than what my older sister got. She had to stay in to care for whichever baby was too young to go out.<br /><br />I discovered that the town had a free recreation program at the local junior high, and hauled my charges there almost every day. The younger ones were really below the age limit, but the staff looked the other way as long as they could keep up and didn't cause problems. I made sure they didn't cause problems.<br /><br />The program had a field trip once every two weeks, and obviously we couldn't afford to go on them. Much to my amazement, my little group was permitted to go on several of the more desirable ones "on scholarship." I discovered later, from a friend whose older sister worked in the program, that the staff felt sorry for us and pitched in to pay our way.KM Rockwoodhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03973749764907859829noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-993649290245605005.post-45372959736298030422016-06-30T10:01:58.871-04:002016-06-30T10:01:58.871-04:00Margaret, it sounds like you had idyllic childhood...Margaret, it sounds like you had idyllic childhood, too. Of course, there were problems here and there, but with free time to spend how you wanted to spend it and parents who backed you what more could you want. I like the freedom with limits you put on your own children. I did pretty much the same thing, but for them it was certain chores they each had to do. I also made a list of other chores they could do to earn extra money like cleaning the peacock cage because they were mine. However, they had to clean the stalls of their own barn animals, horses, ponies or goats. Gloria Aldenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13581719606924364447noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-993649290245605005.post-5728831419593911222016-06-30T09:38:12.482-04:002016-06-30T09:38:12.482-04:00I grew up in suburban New Jersey, free to ride my ...I grew up in suburban New Jersey, free to ride my bike to the library and spend the day reading in air-conditioned comfort. Y camp in the Poconos, family vacations at my grandparents' Cape Cod cottage. Dad and I grew melons, raspberries and tomatoes.<br /><br />I remember waking every morning with the blissful realization that other than chores, I was free to spend my day exactly as I wished.<br /><br />I tried to give that gift of unscheduled time to my own kids during the summer, though they did have to read to earn their TV time.Margaret S. Hamiltonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07979191318652199350noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-993649290245605005.post-21448397459011860002016-06-30T07:11:01.383-04:002016-06-30T07:11:01.383-04:00Kait, so wonderful to read about your memories on ...Kait, so wonderful to read about your memories on the farm. My sons built tree houses in both places we lived. My daughters were younger, but I know they had their own memories. I could have wrote on and on about different childhood memories, but it would have made the blog too long.Gloria Aldenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13581719606924364447noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-993649290245605005.post-87875166436276277402016-06-30T05:38:34.213-04:002016-06-30T05:38:34.213-04:00Glorious story! With farms in my childhood backgro...Glorious story! With farms in my childhood background summer memories hold a special place. I remember the smell of wet earth and new shoots, That dusty wonderful smell of hay just before mowing and the sweet smell of corn when it's ready to pick. One of my biggest childhood treats was pulling an ear from the stalk and eating it right out in the field. Nothing sweeter. <br />Then there were tree houses and rafts to build (the rafts never did float long). I hope kids today are storing their own idyllic memories.Kaithttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07758348842858993203noreply@blogger.com