I am a Gen X-er born to Silent Generation parents.
Every summer, my parents gave my siblings and me a warning that I didn’t think was true.
I didn’t believe them until I experienced it myself as an adult.
Summer Time Fun
I grew up in the 1980s in a typical neighborhood in a small town in Northwest Ohio. Our block was filled with single-family homes.
My siblings and I would spend the summer playing with other kids in the neighborhood.
Back then, it was safe to walk down the alley to meet up with friends in their yards.
We would play for hours outside with no adult supervision.
We Were Loud Sometimes
Sometimes the fun would happen in my yard.
And we could be loud, as can happen when a group of kids are having fun together.
We would do fun things like run through the water of a sprinkler.
Or spray each other with the cold water from the hose.
The Whole Neighborhood Can Hear You
So, when we were especially rowdy, one of my parents (usually my mom) would say:
“Quiet down! The whole neighborhood can hear you.”
I thought they just wanted us to be quiet because they didn’t want to hear us.
I didn’t believe that the whole neighborhood could hear us too.
We Moved
In 1989, my family moved to Michigan.
In our new neighborhood, the yards were larger, and the houses were further apart.
By then, I was also a teenager and no longer had issues being loud outside with friends.
When I Got My Own Place
Eventually, I grew up and got married.
My husband and I moved into a house in an older neighborhood with small yards and many homes nearby.
For the first few years, our closest neighbors were elderly and didn’t have small children at home.
And Then It Happened
Families with children moved in.
And in the summer, the kids were loud! I could hear all the screeching and crying.
When I would look out the window, the kids would either be outsight or halfway down the block.
So, It Was True!
So, when my parents said, “The whole neighborhood can hear you,” they were correct!
I did not believe this until I experienced it as an adult.
At a young age, I couldn’t fathom voices carrying so far.
Are Trampolines Safe Fun?
We didn’t have a trampoline in the backyard when I was growing up.
When I worked at Kmart in the 1990s, I remember trampolines selling out every summer.
They looked and seemed dangerous to me. So, I did some research recently to find out.
Are Trampolines Death Traps or Safe Summer Fun?
Words Can Be Hard
There are many words I struggled to say correctly as a kid and still as an adult!
10 Words I Mispronounced for Most of My Life (and Maybe Still Do)
Funny Life Memes
Enjoy some funny memes about life.
