Childhood Memories

in #dropintheocean5 years ago (edited)



Children are meant to be seen and not heard. Children are meant to be quiet in group settings unless asked a question. Mr. or Mrs. was an adult's first name followed by their surname. Aunt or Uncle was always used before saying their given name.

Greeting someone in person, older than you, was met with a firm handshake and a polite 'How do you do?' Dinner was eaten at a table that was 'set'. Manners at the dinner table was a must. Polite conversation was key. Leaving the dinner table was done by asking permission 'if you could be excused, please'.

In order to watch the only television in the house, you had to ask permission. If you were in the middle of a show and an adult came along, changed the channel, you had two choices. Stay and watch what the adult wanted to watch or go off and find something else to do.



A family gathering was something that you had to get dressed up for. Having company over meant you would be called in to greet them. Once done with answering polite questions you could go off and quietly do your own activities. Television was not one of those activities. It would have been too loud and distracting for the adults.

The above might sound harsh by today's standards, yet, what you learned as a child by following the rules above is the basics of respect. Respect for your parents, great Grandparents, Grandparents, great Aunts, great Uncles, Aunts, Uncles and adults in general. Family values.



Not all people in these categories were perfect but then again no one is.



I was lucky enough to go up north each summer to my great Grandma's dairy farm. She had thirteen kids. All of her children were alive and married when I was a young girl. Most of the people I came in contact with while visiting, two weeks each Summer, ranged in age from sixty to ninety-something.

I don't remember if my Great Grandma even had a television. If she did it was never on that I can recall. Days were spent cooking, eating, asking permission to go down by the barn so I could pet the cows and getting in my second cousin's way while they tried to get their work done. I did learn a lot of swear words while visiting the barn.


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I also learned that baby calves will quickly suck your whole hand in its mouth to taste the salt from your skin. Once you get your hand out of the calf's mouth, NOT an easy task by the way! you will have to quietly find somewhere to wash the dripping slim off your hand.

If you are caught slimed, your second cousins will swear at you for going in by the baby calves alone. It is their job, while you are in the barn, to keep you safe because they are older than you.

When late afternoon came it was time to go back inside. My Great Grandma kept a clean house. Once inside the house, you would have never known you were so close to so many farm animals.

This meant, for me, a bath each night in 2 inches of water before changing from play clothes to nice clothes. No one living at the house quiet understood my extreme ungirly fascination with the barn, all things outside, and love of dirt.



Lucky for me my Great Grandma liked me so she cut me a lot of slack when I came running in the house smelling like a barn. She would nicely tell me to hurry and wash up for dinner but first go back down to the barn, fill up the milk pitcher with fresh milk. I always thought of this as her way of giving me a few more minutes of freedom plus an added bonus of why a girl smelled like a barn.

Evenings, after dinner was done and all was spotless once again, we went into the living room to sit and ... well, being a child, I listened while the adults talked the night away.

Yup, sitting in a dress, on a couch so big my legs stuck straight out, and not talking. Sounds horrible, doesn't it? The funny thing was, it wasn't. To this day, these are some of the best childhood memories I have.



My Great Grandmother was a strong woman. She raised strong children. Those children went and fought in the great wars. Women, in this family, were treated as equals. The men, in this family, knew that if the women didn't do all the work they did, the men would not be able to accomplish, in a day, all that they did. They were partners.

Being in a room full of adults that all felt comfortable saying how they really felt about a subject was fascinating to me. From those early childhood memories, I learned how to debate a subject without tempers flying off the handle.

I learned about the great wars from the people that were there. I learned that really, really, really old people still have the same hopes and dreams as very, very, very young people.

I learned to wait for an opening to ask a question. To not interrupt someone while they were speaking. Not to talk over someone. I learned to talk louder then the next person about a subject did not earn you more respect but less.

I learned if you asked an intelligent question, politely, you received back a full answer no matter your age. So many life lessons were learned on those Summer nights sitting quietly listening to old people talk.

Thinking back to those days, oh so long ago, makes me realize that each night, while the adults talked, at some point friends and family were being commemorated for the sacrifices they gave to their country. Names of fallen friends and family were spoken of with great respect. Silence would fill the room as each person would be remembered least they be forgotten.



From that tiny living room, sitting quietly listening to a room full of old people talk, I learned to have pride in my country, to never forget those that gave their souls for their country. Most important to honor those that came before me for all they did so I could have all I have today.



I was asked to make a post this week for:

The word of the week from the Buddy Up community is Commemorate.

The things that come to an individuals mind when we hear a specific word can bring up many different things to many different people. All are right and none are wrong. It is what comes to mind when a word is mentioned.
Write what comes to your mind when you hear the word commemorate in a post. Use the tag #dropintheocean on your post.

A show is hosted in the Buddy Up server and the posts created for the word of the week are presented. https://discord.gg/rj6Uupq The show typically lasts for one hour. ~@thehive

This post took on a life of its own. Thank you @thehive and @jackmiller for asking me to write a post. You brought back wonderful memories.



Make someone smile today. It can not hurt you.


Love,

Snook



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They were definitely the "Good Old Days".
from the other side of the world, change the sex, and everything else is how I remember it as well.

They were definitely the "Good Old Days".

I so agree!!

Off Topic.

Did you have a pool when you were small?
My kids love you.

I DID :D

and Thank You!!

All sounds wayyyyyy tooooo familiar in so many ways.

Guess the old ways are passing along with those of us who remember them and somewhat adhere to them, while the newer generations are part of a cycle of changes in which after hard times of one day in the future the generations shall too learn to respect and value what and who matters in life.

Human nature, snook, human nature. Always was and always will be.

Most don't have a clue just how good they have it, let alone value it or respect those that made it possible.

Cheers.

Most don't have a clue just how good they have it, let alone value it or respect those that made it possible.

unfortunately very true

Wow. What memories! Pasted a huge smile on my face just reading it. I mean seriously. Thank you.

I already know that I could write a larger reply than your post, and I'll not do it. But the memories are washing over me like the tide.

I remember being 'promoted' from the kids table to the adult table. A really big deal. It never occurred to me that it was as much about needing space at the kids table as being old enough to sit at the adult table.

I knew two Great Grandmothers. One never learned English and the other was a true daughter of the frontier. Amazing women both. One lost a brother in WWI and a grandson in WWII. Had I a son he'd have been named for the WWII guy...

Thanks Snook. This is just beyond wonderful.

This made me so happy to read this morning. :D

I wasn't sure how this post would be received and It is great to know I wasn't the only one that can look back and see why thing were the way they were and have good memories of it.

HA!!!!!!!! to the kids table!! it was so great to get to finally sit at the adult table. A right of passage :D

I hope you DO write a post about your memories. If you ever do please tag me in it!!!

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Yes.. sounds all too familiar!! Those days are long gone tho, shame really. Respect is all but a distant memory for most. Back in the day, things were different. You would have gotten yer ass whipped for acting out...just sayin. Old timers didn't put up with a lot of nonsense! :-D

Old timers didn't put up with a lot of nonsense!

No, they did NOT! LOLL I valued breathing and being able to sit more than acting out. :D

Yes, this is the way I was raised also, pretty much. Seldom see it any more....

I grew up on a Dairy farm, (Guernsey cows), from my birth until I was 15, when we left the farm for small town living. It was quite a sudden change of lifestyle for a farmboy who had never even had "the talk" from Dad, (and never did), suddenly smacking me in the face!

I can back you up on the hand in the calf's mouth, just as you described it. :)

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