I would be back in my youth when all was right in the world. The little mom-and-pop corner grocery store, deli, and drugstore would still be open.
The family would still be able to mostly exist on a single-family income, where most mothers raised the kids and fathers went out to work and supported the family. Kids of all ages would be found outside playing daily stickball, ring-up, kick-the-can, tag, or any other outside games of the day. We would roller skate and box car scooters or go carts and ride our bikes almost anywhere and everywhere without a care.
During the week, this would happen after homework was done, and you were called in or expected home and on time for dinner. Weekends and summers were pretty much the same; the rule was to be home for dinner and back on the street before the streetlights came on for the night.
On Saturday night at 6 PM, everything would close until Monday morning, except for bakeries and drugstores, which could open from 6am until noon on Sunday. Every family would spend the morning at church, and after breakfast, spend a family day with outings to parks, or visit relatives, and vice versa.
Unlike our parents’ favorite sports teams, music, TV shows, and the like, we rarely knew our parents’ political views, and they rarely knew each other’s, as it was understood that such matters were private, meant to stay between the individual and the voting booth. Regardless of who won or lost, our parents would always stand behind the winner as Americans.
We rode bikes without helmets, drank from the garden hose, flipped cards, mowed lawns, or shoveled walks to earn money, and the girls would babysit when old enough. Everyone I knew in our little corner of SW Philly had house chores and were lucky if they got a weekly allowance for their weekend chore, which was usually a dime. Most parents, if questioned, and you never would, would read from the same script -“You were allowed to live, be clothed, fed, schooled, sleep, and partake in the family outings and fun, and at NO cost! ”
We learned to respect our elders and to be grateful, courteous, considerate, and, most importantly, thankful to God for the blessing of being born in America. We recognize that we are much better off than many people around the world. Therefore, when you have the opportunity, remember to pay it forward and be charitable.
You see, most of our parents were from the “Greatest Generation.” They lived or experienced the hardships of the Great Depression, the Roosevelt back-to-work programs, and then went on to fight in World War II and the Korean War. Afterwards, the same generation, well earned, went on to rebuild most of Europe and came home to earn college degrees, putting their energy to work rebuilding our economy and infrastructure. One would be ashamed to complain about anything. They did that with the most incredible humility, as they all knew many who didn’t make it through or had it much worse; it just wasn’t in their DNA
Point to Ponder: Read and learn about the character of those who lived, worked, and fought in those times. Ask yourself how I or our generation would fare today if the world looked at them to step up to the plate if those things happened today? Then pray and thank God it hasn’t.
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