When I Was a Kid…

I recently took the  boys for an old walk down memory lane at the old eduClaytion homestead. We had a blast tromping down the same trail (and sidestepping the same poison ivy) I used to walk as a kid. Then we hit the railroad tracks where I remembered some things I hadn’t thought of in over 20 years.

What surprised me most though was the absence of all the old paths the neighborhood kids used to frequent on foot or bike. I couldn’t find any trace of all those dirt paths or the humongous vines we used to swing on. We used to have massive clearings where hideouts were fashioned from stray wood, logs, and whatever bedding we could pilfer from mom’s linen closet. After an hour of dead ends I realized that kids really aren’t out exploring anymore.

I doubt I would’ve had the same childhood if we had phones and the internet the way everyone does now. I love that stuff and probably would have spent many summer days inside rather than playing thousands of hours of whiffle ball or riding bikes from morning until night. That’s just part of the reality of Generation X. We were the last group that got to grow up through adolescence sans amazing technology.

Well, we had a blast pilfering the railroad and plan a return visit in the near future. Take some time this summer to visit some ghosts at one of your old haunts. Introduce a new generation to the simple thrill of skipping stones and carving legacies into trees. We all need that again from time to time.

What do you remember about exploring as a kid?

The Life & Times of Gen X is a weekly feature about life and pop culture during the 70s, 80s, and early 90s.