This is my first Ten on Tuesday
10 Things That Were Better Way Back Then
Think back to your childhood. Things seemed so uncomplicated then. We all know things have changed. What do you think was better back then compared to now? I’ll list mine. If you do one of your own, let me know. I’d love to read your answers.
1. The air and water - I grew up in Surprise, AZ. We ran outside all the time and drank water straight from the hose or straight from the faucet. The air was so clean and we didn’t go into asthmatic fits from breathing it in. The water was crisp, cool and tasted wonderful. We didn’t need filters on the faucets, nor did we need to buy bottled water. The water didn’t have an over-chlorinated/chemical taste to it. And I’m still alive.
2. TV programs - I remember the days before cable and Cartoon Network. We all gathered around every year to watch The Wizard of Oz or the Miss America pagaent on TV. It was a HUGE event in our house. Remember cartoons on Saturday mornings? We had to wait a whole week to watch them, and they were good cartoons intended for children. They didn’t have boobs or blood spilling out everywhere.
3. We were allowed to celebrate things at school - I remember having CHRISTMAS programs at school. Christmas concerts where we sang things like The 12 Days of Christmas, or What Child is This or Silent Night (which we learned to sing in sign language). I remember in 6th grade being in a play about *gasp* Santa Claus! I remember having Christmas parties with actual Christmas Trees and gift exchanges. We had Halloween parades around the school to show off our costumes. We made stuff for the Easter Bunny. Now, we can’t even hang Christmas lights in our school’s front office or hang up reindeer for fear of offending someone. We can’t say Merry Christmas to people. The kids can’t write Santa letters. It’s so sad.
4. Playing outside – I remember playing outside from sun up to sun down, barefoot in my backyard. Oh the adventures we had. We used our creativity. Now, my kids flip out if I send them outside to play in the sprinklers in the summer time. They would prefer to stay in the house playing video games, or the computer or watching TV. This is the reason our country has become so obese.
5. The magic of Christmas - As a child, everything is so magical, you don’t have to worry about the cost of things, or fighting the crowds to purchase the perfect gift or having an aching back from standing in the kitchen cooking for hours. You just got to reap the benefits of other people’s hard work.
6. School - I think going to school was by far more fun than having to go to work, any day.
7. Life wasn’t so sterile – Back then it was ok to show affection to your teachers and other adults. The teachers were allowed to get emotionally connected to their students, often times going beyond their “duty” to counsel the kids. And we used to be able to hug our teachers! Now, if a student comes to give me a hug at school (which happens numerous times every day) I have to turn to the side so that my hip hits them first and give a one-armed pat/hug. Some teachers only pat the kids on the head. The first time I saw my middle daughter try to hug her Kindergarten teacher and saw the teacher stop her and pat her on the head I was so sad. Then the teacher explained to me that they are not allowed to hug the kids anymore. 
8. Concentration – When I was younger I was able to focus and concentrate on things more easily. Now, I have to have 3 things going at once to be able to concentrate on something. Even this blog… I tried sitting here in the quiet of my house, typing. I couldn’t come up with anything to list. So I turned on the TV, the washing machine and my I-tunes and it’s all flowing. That’s kind of weird, actually.
9. Activity – I was very active when I was younger and loved to run. Now, if I try running I feel like I am going to break an ankle, like my boobs are going to smack me in the face, or like my uterus is going to fall out. Ok, that may hve been TMI…
10. Legend City – Does anyone remember Legend City? It was here, I think maybe in the east valley. We would go there all the time. It was an amusement park. Of course, it was nothing like Disneyland, but it was still awesome to be able to get on rides and experience that magic without having to wait for the State Fair to come around or without having to go out of state. It closed in 1983. It’s now 25 years later. Why does Arizona still not have a major amusement park?
