Page 85 - REALLY What A time Book IX

REALLY SO WHAT
What A Time

DITCH

What could you do in the summer when there were more
children than mosquitoes?

Parents generally didn’t have a clue. They were mostly
wrapped up in their own daily efforts. But, during the summer
they would let kids stay out after dark. My father had a simple
solution. He would call both Joe and me home with a piercing
whistle. You could hear it a mile away. With just two fingers it
made such a blast.
To find a solution parents would let their children stay out
until after dark summer nights. It was safe and of course we
all loved it. Making up games was just part of what we did
anyway. All we needed was a game where lots of us could
play, young and old.

There was a single game that caused us to gather around. It
was similar to ‘kick-the-can’. Two teams, a captain to choose
sides and a few rules. One team would hide while the other
searched for them.
Boundaries were defined, no going into the woods, or past the
tennis courts. If you were caught in a basement your entire
side was out, and the other side would become the chased.

There was a Jail. If you were caught, run-down and tagged,
you went to Jail until freed. Jail was usually an area like our
front porch, enclosed by a couple of banisters. There was a
jailer who would keep the tagged kids in jail from being freed.

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