Hit pause
I think I’ll hit the pause control after this episode. After all, with the first decade coming to a close, and our idyllic Island existence about to take a shift to a new map, the timing is right. But first, some closure.
If I was in the market for a script about “my life”, this is the period I’d want to use. A lot of growth, in every sense. I went from cloth diapers to gum boots. I learned to read (the most important lifeskill, after learning to speak). And it was a happy time and place.
Our family continued to enlarge, and by the time we moved I had three siblings. Specifically, sisters. My best bet for having my own room. I also profited from the pecking order. No hand-me-downs. As good as it gets, in the family economy. We changed cars, a couple of times. We had dogs. A full complement of grandparents.
My life outside had specific boundaries. No going out the lane. No playing in the middle of the tracks. In fact, my only attempt at hitch hiking got me a ride AND a physical punishment (that was a rare event). I regret my decision to find a quick way home from Sunday School.
There aren’t many souvenirs, in the physical sense. We didn’t keep old school books. Or scribblers. I wasn’t particularly productive in the art sense. But, I remember… so many things. If the movie never gets made, I’ll still have the memories. We don’t get to “do it over again”.
