Much like John Mellencamp, I was born in a small town. And while I don’t necessarily share his affinity for rose-colored abodes, I did spend my formative years in a tiny cow town no bigger than your momma’s Sunday purse. My graduating class had fewer than 90 students when all was said and done.
Recently someone posted a photo from our childhood on Facebook. It included a cast of characters from the old neighborhood, rakes in hand, preparing to jump in the monster of all crunchy leaf piles we’d just crafted:
That's yours truly front and center flashing the peace sign.
Aside from the groovy fashion statements, some viewers of this shot remarked on a couple things. One was that clearly manual labor was not unheard of back then. If your lawn needed raking, the kids got out there and did it. Of course, I’ll freely admit that when the end product included running full tilt and launching yourself into that delicious-smelling crisp pile of leaves, we were more motivated. Raking just for the sake of dragging them to the curb? Not quite so fun.
The same person also remarked that there didn’t seem to be an issue with childhood obesity back then. I never would have noticed that, but you know what? He’s right. We weren’t inside with faces glued to a screen. We were outside running, pedaling, skating, and playing games.
The thing that was most thought-provoking to me is something I think about every day with my kids. When we were young, we dashed out of the house as soon as humanly possible so we could play with the kids in the ‘hood.
We returned home for lunch and headed back out.
We scarfed down our dinner in the hopes of catching a couple more hours of fun before the porch lights began to dot the darkening street, signaling the end of that day’s final game of chase (hide and seek with no home-free).
So here’s what that’s left me to wonder:
Are there creepier people in the world today or did we just not pay them much mind back then? Was it because we were in a small town that we didn’t worry about being abducted?
I wouldn’t dream of letting my kids head out for the day. These days, even short jaunts with friends requires a “stanger danger” refresher course. So, does the Internet’s easy access to things like porn create these new boogey men? Or were they there all along?
What are your thoughts?
From bonnie:
I remember a few years back I made the comment that even though we live a half mile from the high school, I wouldn’t let the sons walk to school. Not because of stranger danger but because of the lack of being able to walk safely to and from (it’s a really busy country road). My father-in-law thought I was being too protective of the sons.
I think there were the pervs when we were young and it’s just the awareness of them that we are more careful about our children.
bonnie recently posted..Fall Break in Pictures
From Wombat Central:
Yeah, I don’t know if parenting styles have changed drastically or if there really is more to be concerned about.
From Cristy:
Haha. Anyone else see the irony in Wombat asking if there were creepers back then *after* she posts the fabulous picture?? LOL (kidding, girl!!)
BTW, I love, love, love your new masthead.
Cristy recently posted..Conflicted
From Wombat Central:
C’mon now. I’m not creeping lady! I needed to illustrate mah point. I wondered if I should blur faces. Do I need to blur faces?
PS Sophie’s glad you like the header.
From Missy | Literal Mom:
Ohhhhhh, I think it’s so hard to tell which came first! I think public awareness came to creepers with the proliferation of media exploitation. Then maybe that bred more creepers because other creepers found out there were kindred spirits out there. And then with the internet came secure chat rooms and the ability for creepers to support each others deviant behavior.
Did I lose you at sentence 2? I think I lost myself . . .
Missy | Literal Mom recently posted..The Literal Mom Facebook Page
From Wombat Central:
I actually followed you–good points.
Let’s have confusing chats together. In a secure chat room. Hee! ;D
From Teri:
I don’t which came first…maybe because we all used to know our neighbors there wasn’t as much as a threat…now we don’t…and the unknown is scary.
We used to be outside all day and come home when it got dark…I can’t imagine letting my 11 year old do that now…and when I did that I was 7 or 8!
Teri recently posted..Pinned It: We got crafty for fall.
From Wombat Central:
Yep. We were pretty young when we started doing that, too.
From Zannah:
I grew up on Navy bases, so we were fairly safe when we were running around after school and in the evenings. In my neighborhood now, the kids all seem to be either in the yards and sidewalks RIGHT in front of their houses or in fenced back yards. I hardly ever see kinds playing in bigger areas.
Zannah recently posted..What kind of lab hates to get wet?
From Wombat Central:
Seems to be the way it is these days. We do have kids in the ‘hood who play together, but it’s nothing like it was when we were kids. Kinda sad, I think.
From Evan:
Peace sign–classic!!
From Wombat Central:
Dude. It was the 70′s! ;D