TO ALL THE KIDS WHO SURVIVED THE
 
1930's, 40's, 50's, 60's and 70's!!
 
First, we survived being born to mothers who smoked and/or drank while they
were pregnant.
 
They took aspirin, ate blue cheese dressing, tuna from a can and didn't get
tested for diabetes.
 
Then after that trauma, we were put to sleep on our tummies in baby cribs
covered with bright colored lead-base paints..
 
We had no childproof lids on medicine bottles, locks on doors or cabinets
and when we rode our bikes, we had baseball caps not helmets on our heads.
 
As infants & children, we would ride in cars with no car seats, no booster
seats, no seat belts, no air bags, bald tires and sometimes no brakes.
 
Riding in the back of a pick-up truck on a warm day was always a special
treat.
 
We drank water from the garden hose and not from a bottle.
 
We shared one soft drink with four friends, from one bottle and no one
actually died from this.
 
We ate cupcakes, white bread, real butter and bacon. We drank Kool-Aid made
with real white sugar. And, we weren't overweight. WHY?
 
Because we were always outside playing... that's why!
 
We would leave home in the morning and play all day, as long as we were
back when the streetlights came on.
 
No one was able to reach us all day. And, we were O. K.
 
We would spend hours building our go-carts out of scraps and then ride them
down the hill, only to find out we forgot the brakes. After running into
the bushes a few times, we learned to solve the problem.
 
We did not have Playstations, Nintendo's and X-boxes. There wer e no video
games, no 150 channels on cable, no video movies or DVD's, no
surround-sound or CD 's, no cell phones, no personal computers, no Internet
and no chat rooms. WE HAD FRIENDS and we went outside and found them!
 
We fell out of trees, got cut, broke bones and teeth and there were no
lawsuits from these accidents.
 
We ate worms and mud pies made from dirt, and the worms did not live in us
forever.
 
We were given BB guns for our 10th birthdays, made up games with sticks and
tennis balls and, although we were told it would happen, we did not put out
very many eyes.
 
We rode bikes or walked to a friend's house and knocked on the door or rang
the bell, or just walked in and talked to them.
 
Little League had tryouts and not everyone made the team. Those who didn't
had to learn to deal with disappointment.
 
Imagine that!!
 
The idea of a parent bailing us out if we broke the law was unheard of.
They actually sided with the law!
 
These generations have produced some of the best risk-takers, problem
solvers and inventors ever.
 
The past 50 years have been an explosion of innovation and new ideas.
 
We had freedom, failure, success and responsibility, and we learned how to
deal with it all. If you are one of them? Congratulations!
 
You might want to share this with others who have had the luck to grow up
as kids, before the lawyers and the government regulated so much of our
lives for our own good.
 

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