|
Saturday we had what the news is describing as the "first snow" of the season. None of this "wintry mix" stuff, mind you, but SNOW! I remember that as a child I couldn't wait for the first snow of the winter. Views from every window held the promise of fun, and as soon as there was confirmation that school was closed (in those days it was conveyed by a fire siren blasting loudly around 7 AM or listening to the endless list of schools recited on WOR AM radio) the race was on to take off the school outfit, pull on the warmest pants I had plus that nasty "snow suit" and gloves and run outside to meet with my best friend next door. By that time my father had probably shoveled the driveway and put the chains on the car so my mother could go out. The huge piles of snow that had been thrown to the sides would make ideal snow forts for the first official snow ball fight of the season. The rules were simple: no ice and no rock balls. Rolling up our ammunition supply was followed quickly by launching the first missile, then the next, and on and on until everybody was thoroughly wet and cold. By then it was time for lunch and a change into dry clothes. The boots had to be placed carefully on newspapers right at the door, and the snow pants and jackets hung over the bath tub to dry out. No one had extra clothes or electric dryers then, so we just managed as best we could. After a respectable amount of time, we went back to the forts to engage our enemy yet again!
How different things were today when I took Skittles and Patches outside for their first Big Walk of the day. The neighbors were already outside on their ATV's. Their father, on his, had one child behind him on the seat, and he was pulling a sled behind him that held two more. They took advantage of our huge lawn to safely pull the sled around corners and trees. I waved as they passed me, and eventually my neighbor pulled up to me where I stood in the garage watching the happy sight. Everyone was laughing, their dog was running alongside the vehicles and the sled, and I was asked "Do you want a ride?". In past years BC (before chair) I would have said yes, but now that was not an option. So I thanked him, smiled, and said "be careful". My husband, who had gone shopping, warned me that the walkway I had shoveled out last night to give me a place to walk the dogs had frozen solid and to be careful. Sure enough, the empty place was ice, and my neighbor had to laugh at Patches trying to navigate over the slick surface. The neighbors' dog is a big yellow Labrador that gallops like a race horse. Our Shih Tzu's have to work their little legs many times harder to keep up. By now one of the boys had asked to have his own ATV taken out of the shed so that he could ride on it. Now there were two ATV's on the move, the larger one still pulling the sled, and general commotion in the canine area. These ATV's could really move along, and with two in the space of my lawn, even though it is big, caution was the word. Somehow fun was achieved without catastrophe, but finally the smaller ATV was having trouble. It started, and then stopped. The boy riding it tried to rev up the engine but with no success. At last his father came over to help. Although I could not hear them, I guessed that the conversation contained words like "out of gas" or "needs transmission fluid". At that point my dogs had had their walk and were ready to go back inside for a "peanut butter biscuit". I have always loved being around kids. I paid for part of my college teaching YMCA day camp first in New Jersey and then in Alaska. And to see them outside playing with their parents is a real treat; one family likes to play ball, another likes to ride ATV's, but they are all interacting TOGETHER! The past two summers have seen one neighbor hosting a Luau for the whole neighborhood. He has an above ground pool that was totally filled with kids splashing, dunking, playing "Marco Polo", and having a generally good time. It was great! The pool was not intended to hold adults, but that didn't keep the parents from going past to splash the youngsters or toss them in play into the water. I had hoped that his same mob would show up for Trick or Treat in October, but the candy seeking crowd was disappointingly meager. If my neighbor has his Luau next summer, I just may make up some Halloween treat bags and bring them along with our address and the message that WE ARE OPEN ON HALLOWEEN! Just Mom |
| Return To My Home Page | Return To The Archives | |
 |
||
| Cartoon Courtesy of Coffee Cup Software |