How Did We Survive Our Childhood?

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iVillage Member
Registered: 03-26-2003
How Did We Survive Our Childhood?
5
Thu, 09-11-2003 - 8:36am
Think of our society how it was, and how it is now. I'm sure you've all seen this before, but it's worth repeating......

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According to today's regulators and bureaucrats, those of us who were kids in the 30's, 40's, 50's, 60's, 70's or even the early 80's, probably shouldn't have survived.

Our baby cribs were covered with bright colored lead-based paint.

We had no childproof lids or locks on medicine bottles, doors, or cabinets, and when we rode our bikes, we had no helmets.

Not to mention the risks we took hitchhiking.

As children, we would ride in cars with no seat belts or air bags. Riding in the back of a pickup truck on a warm day was always a special treat.

We drank water from the garden hose and not from a bottle. Horrors!

We ate cupcakes, bread and butter, and drank soda pop with sugar in it, but we were never overweight because we were always outside playing.

We shared one soft drink with four friends, from one bottle, and no one actually died from this.

We would spend hours building our go-carts out of scraps and then rode down the hill, only to find out we forgot the brakes. After running into the bushes a few times, we learned to solve the problem.

We would leave home in the morning and play all day, as long as we were back when the street lights came on. No one was able to reach us all day. No cell phones. Unthinkable!

We did not have Playstations, Nintendo 64, X-Boxes, no video games at all, no 99 channels on cable, video tape movies, surround sound, personal cell phones, personal computers, or Internet chat rooms.

We had friends! We went outside and found them.

We played dodge ball, and sometimes, the ball would really hurt.

We fell out of trees, got cut and broke bones and teeth, and there were no lawsuits from these accidents. They were accidents. No one was to blame but us. Remember accidents?

We had fights and punched each other and got black and blue and learned to get over it.

We made up games with sticks and tennis balls and, although we were told it would happen, we did not put out any eyes.

We rode bikes or walked to a friend's home and knocked on the door, or rang the bell or just walked in and talked to them.

Little League had tryouts and not everyone made the team. Those who didn't had to learn to deal with disappointment.

Some students weren't as smart as others, so they failed a grade and were held back to repeat the same grade. Horrors!

Tests were not adjusted for any reason.

Our actions were our own. Consequences were expected.

The idea of parents bailing us out if we got in trouble in school or broke a law was unheard of. They actually sided with the school or the law. Imagine that!

This generation has produced some of the best risk-takers, problem solvers, and inventors, ever.

We had freedom, failure, success, and responsibility --- and we learned how to deal with it.

And you're one of them! Congratulations.

Please pass this on to others who were blessed to grow up as "kids" before lawyers and government regulated our lives "for our own good" !!!


iVillage Member
Registered: 02-08-2001
Thu, 09-11-2003 - 8:48am
Oh how true!

Susan

iVillage Member
Registered: 03-26-2003
Thu, 09-11-2003 - 9:28am
These are really true Donna. I think about some of these things a lot. It seems that by giving so much (enabling) we are actually making our children weaker as the generations grow up.

Thanks for posting.

Phyllis

Live With Passion!

Phyllis

iVillage Member
Registered: 03-26-2003
Thu, 09-11-2003 - 3:52pm
I wonder about this all time. It was not only my childhood, but my children's too! I always think about this when I hear things today about not using blankets and stuff on the kids. There seems to be a new no-no everyday!

Thanks for sharing.

Grace

iVillage Member
Registered: 01-03-2001
Thu, 09-11-2003 - 4:52pm
Loved this post!Made me think about growing up and playing in the yard with all the neighborhood kids.We would play until it got dark and our moms called us home.

Miss P




 

iVillage Member
Registered: 03-26-2003
Thu, 09-11-2003 - 10:17pm
How sad that our kids and grandkids will never know the freedom and sense of security we did. I roamed all over town, through woods, and was out past dark when I was in elementary school, and no one ever worried about any of that. We were a lot more self sufficient, had our immune systems built up the hard way by being exposed to germs and dirt, and earned true grades for our school work. One of the things that upsets me the most is the dumbing down of America. If kids can't perform up to standard then the standards are lowered for them. Here's an example, grading when I was in school and grading now in the same school system:

Then

A 96-100

B 89-95

C 79-88

D 70-78

F 70 and below

Now

A 90-100

B 80-89

C 70-79

D 60-69

F 60 and below

How can people compare report cards from years ago and now, and now there are "weighted" grades, so a 4.0 is no longer the highest possible grade. There are some kids who are up to almost "5" with this new system. I wonder if they would even score as high as we did if we tested them with the same material and the old grading scale. Oh, well, what can we do? Anyway, that's my vent for the night. ;-)

Rhonda

       ~~Rhonda~~


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