Uphill Both Ways

I remember being a kid in New Meadows, Idaho. We rode our bikes over every square inch of that little town. It scares me to think back on the herd of us crossing Hwy 95, back and forth, twenty times a day. Did we stop and look both ways REALLY, every time? Did we pay attention? (I think like a mother now!)
















How did we all make it to the age of 12? I remember the sidewalks, where they met the store fronts, warm in the early summer sun. We'd throw down our bikes and jump barefooted onto the warm concrete. We'd sit down laughing and rip open our Laffy Taffys and pop the tops on our Mountain Dew. We'd get all sugared up and head over to the Pizza Parlor to bum quarters for video games and the bracelets they sold in the machines. I had at least 20 on each arm. The back room was dark and that's where all of the "cool" big kids hung out, snogging in the corner and making dirty jokes. We'd giggle and run out into the fresh sunny air and ride down to the playground.

That grassy park, in the middle of town, is where we all congregated. There was a pump handled water faucet, probably put there for actual travelers that needed to fill water jugs, or for the maintenance man to use while watering the grass. We found another use for it. If you turned it on full blast and then waited while someone took a drink off the fountain, you could slam it shut and water would shoot up into their face! We'd spend long stints trying to convince each other that we REALLY weren't going to do it. "No, I promise. I'm just getting a drink. I won't squirt you." Then you'd build up trust and once they bent down to drink with one eye on you.....you'd SLAM it down and squirt them in the other eye! We spent lots of time fighting about what was "fair" and who "started it."

Then we'd head over to the big water tank and throw rocks at it. They made the coolest pinging noises, depending on the size. We'd roll down the little hill laughing and hoping the boys would show up so we could play dodge ball. That was when they still had the old fire escape set up as a slide. We'd take off our shoes, lick our hands, wipe them on our feet to make them "stick" and climb up to the top. Then we'd slide down and collide into each other and scream and laugh and do it all over again. (Oh, I sure hope I bathed every night, or at least washed my hands...ugh...I doubt it.)

I hear old timers say that, "These times are not what they used to be." I hear folks complain, "What's happening to the world? These are desperate times." I hear stories of the 50's and 60's when soda was 5 cents and movies had no kissing. I hear the wistful longing in the voices dreaming of the "good 'ole days." Well, guess what? They are not gone. There was also a war going on then that was taking away thousands of brothers and fathers. Our country was only 20 years out of a depression that lost homes, lives, and depleted happiness. There was also racial bigotry so fierce that it drove Americans apart! "Hard times" have always been around. There is no new thing under the sun.














Barring some sort of strange abuse or trauma, kids grow up with a halo of protection around them. It's natures filter, if you will. We are built to survive and we are given LOVE immeasurable to sturdy us through the despair. Kids have pure eyesight and nine lives. And, I'll bet when they grow up, they will tell stories of the "good 'ole days!" We must focus on the sunshine and the hope, ALWAYS! We can't let our pessimism, we've attained from being responsible adults, damper the dream spirit that lives in their hearts. We must remember what it's like NOT to worry.


















Remember that? Back when Mom did all the laundry and Dad paid all the bills? Remember back to when your biggest worry was a flat tire on your bike and getting change for the concession stands? I do. And that, as a parent, is what I get to do for my beautiful girls. I get to be the worrier. And as I stress out over the dinner, dishes, laundry, cleaning, noise level, crying baby, and bills...I can watch them run through the grass laughing and chasing each other. I can chuckle as I see them climb trees and play monkey. Yes, they do chores. Yes, they have clean rooms and bathe ALMOST every night. Yeah, they know how to cook and wash a toilet. I am proud that they help me haul groceries and vacuum. I am also double proud that they don't have to think about how hard it really all is. There is plenty of time for that...like the rest of their lives!
























Our vision must be clear and full of promise and strength. Our goals must reach further than what's on the bbq and the price of gas. Life is GOOD! The sun is still rising in the East and settingin the West. Isn't that awesome? The tides go in and out. It's a sure thing. Just because beef is $5.39/lb at Walmart Superstore...I am not going to give up! I'm going to buy chicken for $1.29/lb. Back atcha Wally! Cuz, hey....it's the GOOD NEW DAYS! And I'm just getting younger, richer, and falling more in love every time the earth rolls round. So are you.