MONDAY, MAY 9, 2016
MORE YESTERDAYS
My poor kids ...they were raised by an overly-protective mother
who worried endlessly about things that could happen to them.
I'd been raised that way,because of being born with a bone
condition, hereditary. My parents had been told to watch me
carefully, to see that I didn't run or participate in any kind of
activity that might get me injured. Specifically, falling on my
head, because the fontanelles were still soft , prone to injury.
The 'soft spots' as most folks call them did not close at the age of 2
years, like most kids' fontanelles do.
There was always the possibility of an injury, so, even in middle or
junior high school, as it used to be called, I was pulled out of gym
class, because the docs at that time, thought it to be too risky .
So, I went through childhood like that, too scared to do much
of any of the things that 'normal' kids do.
And when I married and had children, it was 'normal' for me to
be cautious with them, especially since my first baby was born
with this congenital condition, or disease.
As the other two babies came, without this bone condition, I
was so used to watching my little girl, Linda, carefully, that
I also treated little Dwight and the last baby, Candy, with the
same over-vigilance that I was so familiar with, having lived with
it all my own life.
And so it was, that i didn't let them do many of the childhood
activities that their friends did, for fear they might get hurt
or killed .
Little did I know that they did most of them, anyway !! And,
as I related earlier, they didn't let us know until very deep into their
adulthood !
Some of what they did was so daring, like climbing a tree to pick
the apricots . The danger they faced was that the tree limb they
climbed on hung over a wash which was cement ! if they'd fallen,
it could have cost them their lives !
This tree was in the back yard of some lady's house, and she saw
them, and when they got down ( guess she yelled at them to do so ),
she must have followed them home, as she knocked on our door
and told me what they had done. it wasn't the apricots that they'd
taken, it was the very real danger of them getting killed that
upset the woman ! She had been very afraid for them !
Well, I'm not sure, but think they denied doing it, and i believed
them, not realizing they were lying. I honestly believed our
lids never lied to us !
That may be because I lied to my mother just once in my childhood,
and never forgot the hurt look in her eyes as she knew I was lying,
and that look stayed with me for the rest of my life, so to this day
I find it very difficult to lie .
So, with my three kids, I really thought that they didn't lie,
especially since my husband, their step-father, was so harsh with
them, that their behavior at home, or when we went anywhere, was
exemplary, for fear of his judgement and punishment .
My kids were, as I always said, 'little angels', as I thought of them,
because they were never really naughty ar home.
Perhaps that is why, when they were out playing with the neighbor
kids, they did some of the risky things that most kids do when
they're little, wanting to fit in, maybe, or just because they wanted
to do these things.
Anyway, as i have already said, we were unaware, and thankful
later on, when they started telling us of all their adventurous
exploits !!
Ok, that's enough for today. Hope you're enjoying my tales
of my kids' daring adventures !
So, it seems their childhood was more 'normal' than it would have
been, if they's listened to my advice and warnings , and, for that,
I'm happy !
This has been a bit long-winded, but I wanted to explain my
kids' behavior, and my part in it. I'm more than happy that they took matters into their own hands and had a pretty good childhood,
in spite of me, and my many restrictions.
Until next time...
