My favorite thing about Shelter in Place to date is that my children are enjoying my childhood. More often than not, in the last couple of years, I found myself sad that my kids didn’t have the childhood that I had.
When I was young, it was okay for a bunch of kids to explore a neighborhood without adult supervision. I recall building forts among the thorns of the blackberry bushes in the land behind our house. I remember growing up in neighborhoods where backyards had no fences and I could walk to a friends house by walking through 4 backyards, hopping over gardens.
My cousins and I biked to abandoned parking lots. We explored creeks. We jumped through sprinklers in the hot California sun. We knew the neighborhood kids & enjoyed refreshments at each one of their homes.
Prior to Shelter in Place, we didn’t do this. It just wasn’t the norm. The kids wanted to drive to the jump house at the mall or they spend their days on their electronics. We didn’t want them playing in the street because the cars were driving by too fast or the world didn’t feel safe. It simply didn’t come as a thought to open the doors and let them wander.
Over the last couple of months, this has changed. Our backyard has turned into a big land of adventure. Even I find myself using it as the outdoor space we set it up for. Our garage door is open for most of the evening, with the happy squeals of the kids drifting through the house as they launch themselves down the drive way on their bikes. My plastic tupperware is filled with bugs and lizards that they find on their grand adventures & the sprinklers on the front lawn serve as their great amusement park.
I sit in a lounge chair with a book with waves of nostalgia washing over me. Life has a way of showing you exactly what you need and this was exactly what our family needed.
What has Shelter in Place changed for you?
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