Maybe childhood wasn’t as warm and fuzzy as we remember, or portrayed in movies and on TV…but it had its moments.

• Saturday morning meant cartoons – not hours of commercials interspersed with cartoons.

• At supper, I heard about children starving in various countries. I was more than willing to give them all my peas.

• Avoiding cracks so you didn’t break your Mom’s back. When my Mom says her back hurts, I get a twinge of guilt.

• Going downtown was something exciting, not scary.

• Hide and seek until the street lights came on, running home as fast as possible with a breathless ‘see ya tomorrow’ to your friends.

• Early to bed, early to rise, early to appointments, early to parties, early to finish your schoolwork early so you can watch TV. Life had a rhythm, and it was an early rhythm.

• Christmas was celebrated in a few days, not months.