Child's Play

“Back in the day” seems to be the modern way of saying “in the olden days”.  Cliches move with the times as so much that we do changes.  Today it is rare to see children playing in the yard, front or back, and I am not really sure what sort of games they play other than electronic games.  But today’s story isn’t about what’s right or wrong, it’s more about the nostalgia of play.

       Often when my brother, sister and I played together it would be very active.  We were either cowboys and Indians or we were detectives or spies.  We ran around the neighbourhood and climbed up trees and jumped over babbling creeks.  My mother could never understand how we would come home with soakers because she had no idea that we were crossing the street and going down to the creek on the other side.  In fact I am pretty sure that she was unaware for years that there even was a creek on the other side of the road.  By the time she found out about it our boundaries had gone beyond our own street so we were fairly safe in crossing the street.

       While many of our games came straight out of our fertile imagination others were based on television shows or movies that we had seen.  Sometimes we played Stagecoach or Wagon Train; sometimes we were circus performers riding white and black horses with plumes in their manes; sometimes we were the horses because that way we could run wild and do extra fantastic tricks.  I remember one day my dad came home from work and brought an antique telephone home for us to play with.  It was circa 1945, black and with a raised dial.  Man, we were in heaven.  We used to pick that phone up and slam it down just like Mannix.  None of us were thrilled with actually being Mannix though because young as we were we didn’t think much of him since he got knocked out in every single episode.  We preferred the men from U.N.C.L.E., Napoleon and Ilya.  My sister and I were happy to find role models in Honey West, Emma Peel and Daphne Dancer where we could be brilliant detectives instead of sidekicks.

       I got a laugh the other day when I was watching Bill Mahar.  They were discussing whether or not violent video games could lead people to violence and Mahar was dubious at those who objected to the premises.  He said “when a college football player can be fooled into believing he has a girlfriend via social media, I think those watching video games cannot discern games from reality”.  It does give one pause.  Hmmm?