A little house with two bedrooms and one car on the street
A mower that you had to push to make the grass look neat.
In the kitchen on the wall we only had one phone
And no need for recording things -- someone was always home.
We only had a living room where we would congregate
Unless it was at meal time in the kitchen where we ate.
We had no need for family rooms or extra rooms to dine
When meeting as a family, those two rooms would work out fine.
We only had one TV set, and channels -- maybe two
But always there was one of them with something worth the view.
For snacks we had potato chips that tasted like a chip
And if you wanted flavor, you made Lipton's onion dip.
Weekends were for family trips or staying home to play
We all did things together, even go to church to pray.
When we did our weekend trips, depending on the weather
No one stayed at home because we liked to be together.
Sometimes we would separate to do things on our own
But we knew where the others were without our own cell phone.
Get a baseball game together with the friends you know
Have real action playing ball and no game video.
Then there were the movies with your favorite movie star
And nothing can compare to watching movies from your car.
Then there were the picnics at the peak of summer season
Pack a lunch and find some trees and never need a reason.
Remember when the doctor used to be the family friend
And you didn't need insurance or a lawyer to defend
The way that he took care of you or what he had to do
Because he took an oath and strived to do the best for you.
Remember when the country was united under god
And prayer in schools and public places was not deemed as odd.
Remember when the church was used for worshipping the Lord
And not used for commercial use, or for some business board.
Remember going to the store and shopping casually
And when you went to pay for it you actually used money.
Nothing that you had to swipe or punch in some amount
Remember when the cashier person had to really count.
Remember when we breathed in air that smelled so fresh and clean
And chemicals were not used on the grass to keep it green.
The milkman and the bread man used to go from door to door
And it was just a few cents more than going to the store.
There was a time when mailed letters came right to your door
Without a lot of junk mail ads sent out by every store.
The mailman knew each house by name and knew where it was sent
There were no loads of mail addressed to "Present Occupant."
Remember when the words "I do" meant that you really did
And not just temporarily 'til someone blew their lid.
There was nothing as "no one's fault, we just made a mistake"
There was a time when married life was built on give and take.
There was a time when just one glance was all that it would take
And you would know the kind of car -- the model, year and make.
They didn't look like turtles trying to squeeze every mile
They were streamlined, white-walled, finned -- and really had style.
One time the music that you played whenever you would jive
Was from a vinyl, big-holed record called a forty-five.
The record player had a post to keep them all in line
And then the records would drop down and play one at a time.
Oh, sure, we had our problems then just like we do today
And always we were striving for a better way.
And every year that passed us by brought new and greater things
We now can even program phones with music or with rings.
Oh, the simple life we lived still seems like so much fun
How can you explain a game -- just kick the can and run?
And boys would put baseball cards between the bicycle spokes
And for a nickel those red machines had little bottled Cokes.
This life seemed so much easier and slower in some ways
I love the new technology, but I sure miss those days.
So time moves on and so do we, and nothing stays the same
But I sure do love to reminisce and walk down memory lane.
- Author Unknown -
Copyright (c) by Rusti since 2002
All Rights Reserved
Please sign my Guestbook before your leave.
I'd love to know that you stopped by.
Life isn't waiting for the storm to pass. Its about learning how to dance in the rain.