Lost In the Fifties

Do you remember.....

Hide and go seek at dusk. 

One speed-bicycles.

Hopscotch, butterscotch, double dutch. 

Jacks, kickball, and dodge ball.

Mother May I?  Red Rover.

Hula Hoops, jacks.

When you picked up the phone and
the operator said, "Number please?"

 Wax Lips and Mustaches. 

Penny candy in a brown paper bag.

A million mosquito bites and sticky fingers.

Listening to Superman on the radio. 

Catching lightning bugs in a jar.

Laughing so hard that your stomach hurt. 

An ice cream cone on a warm summer night... 

A cherry coke from the fountain at the corner drug store. 

Cops and Robbers....Cowboys and Indians.

Running till you were out of breath.
 
When the only time you wore sneakers
was at school, for gym.

When it took five minutes for the TV to warm up,
 if you even had one.

When nearly everyone's mom was at
home when the kids got there.

When laundry detergent had free glasses,
 dishes or towels hidden inside the box. 

When nobody owned a purebred dog.

When a quarter was a decent allowance.

When you'd reach into a muddy gutter for a penny.

When girls never kissed on the first date.

The Draft.

When your mom wore nylons
that came in two pieces. 

When every adult had a title as
 Mr., Mrs., Miss., Sir, or Ma'am.  

The Mickey Mouse Club

When you got your windshield cleaned,
 oil checked, and gas pumped, without asking,
 for free, every time.
 And you got trading stamps to boot!
 And, you didn't pay for air. 

Drive In movies.

When homework assignments were a daily routine.

When being sent to the principal's office was
 nothing compared to the fate that awaited a
misbehaving student at home. 

Sitting on the back porch listening to
the ballgame on the radio.

When Sundays were for God and families. 

When you removed your hat and held your hand
 over your heart in silence during the
 "Pledge of Allegiance" or the National Anthem.

May all your memories
be warm and happy!