I’ve been feeling a bit "homesick" for my childhood for the past few years. I grew up in Connecticut in the 1970’s. In 1979, my parents & I relocated to Florida. Even though I’ve lived here for 32 years, I’ve never stopped missing ‘home.’ I miss New England. I miss the soft, wispy grass that I used to lay upon in my backyard, daydreaming as I discovered pictures in the clouds. I miss the
sunny yellow forsythia tree in my backyard, and the happy daffodils in the yard of Kate & Phyllis, the elderly ladies who lived next door. I miss walking to the edge of my yard and being able to look down at the Quinnipiac River – or across to see the monument on East Rock. I miss the maple tree on the side of my house that used to drop little seeds shaped like butterflies that I would pry apart & put on my nose! I miss dandelions, which during one phase of their lives would be puffy white wisps upon which children made wishes and blew them out into the w
orld; and during their other phase, were sweet yellow flowers that I would pick for my mother. Their leaves always made great lettuce in pretend salads that went nicely alongside mud pies. And who could forget buttercups, that if you held them under your chin, would indicate whether or not you were allergic to butter! I miss fireflies; catching them in jars during warm summer nights when I was allowed to stay outside and play until my parents called me inside. I miss the 3 trees that lived on my front lawn, the middle one upon which I carved my initials. (I’ve seen recent pictures of my childhood home, and all the trees are gone, now.)
I miss the stone wall in front of my house, and in front of all the houses in my neighborhood. Many hours were spent walking and sitting on those walls. Ours was very low, but all of the other houses on my street had high walls, so it was a treat when I was little to have someone lift me up onto them as we’d take a walk so I could ‘pretend tightrope” my way down the street.
I miss sidewalks that appeared as if they had glitter in them; glistening full of treasure that sparked the imagination. I miss the changing seasons, and collecting fall leaves to press between pieces of waxed paper. (I did this with shaved crayons, too, but always had to be careful that the crayons didn’t melt onto the iron!)
I miss the world’s greatest pizza from Grand Apizza just a few yards away from the Grand Avenue Bridge that was a staple of my childhood. I miss the feel of the quaint fishing village that could be partially seen fr
om my backyard. The riverfront was peppered with old Victorian era houses with lookout towers ("widow's watch") so the women could watch for their fisherman husbands to return from sea. One such old home was a few doors down on the street were I grew up. It was out of place because our street didn’t have any houses that looked like that one. It was a steel blue color with white trim. It sat far back off a field overgrown with tall grasses. The house was in bad disrepair, and we kids used to refer to it as ‘the haunted house” and we were convinced that the woman who lived it was an evil witch. We never went near that house on Halloween!
I miss the little fire station at the bottom of the hill we lived on; I have fond memories of going there with my mother when she voted during the presidential elections. That was back during the time when they had a curtain that you would close when you walked into the booth and then you voted by flipping little switches. It’s funny today for me to see red fire trucks, too. Where I grew up, they were white.
I miss the ‘Grand Spa’ soda counter next to the bridge where my dad & I used to go for Chocolate Sodas. My sister also used to take me there when I was very little, and I used to make her play “Hey Jude” by the Beatles on the jukebox. I remember the first time I was allowed to walk there by myself. It seemed like a 100-mile journey!
I miss huge
blizzards that meant I didn’t have to go to school. I miss having snowball fights with my dad, and watching my dog, Sparky, throw snow up in the air so he could catch it & eat it. I miss making snow angels, and eating icicles. The snow banks would get really high at the curb when the plows came through after a big blizzard, and they’d make the best snow forts. It would seem like daylight for 24 hours because the streetlights reflecting off the snow at night would cause it to look blindingly bright outside.I miss having adventures in the woods behind my cousin’s house, and playing near little brooks & creeks. I miss Sunday afternoon dinners of homemade roast beef, gravy, carrots, and mashed potatoes, and desserts of homemade bundt cake with lemon icing. I miss the gathering of family that would come over and spend the day visiting after dinner.
I miss ‘innocent’ television programs that were funny and made me feel good, like Mr. Roger’s Neighborhood, Sesame Street, The Magic Garden…Welcome Back Kotter, Happy Days & Laverne & Shirley. I miss orange Tang with my breakfast, and the whirring sound of the double window fan lulling me to sleep in the summer months.
I miss going to Lighthouse Point Park, and seeing the sculptures that adorned the sand, and the "ghost parking lot" in Hamden Plaza. I miss going to Malley’s Department Store downtown and visiting the huge parakeet cage in the children’s shoe department. I miss passing by the big blue pyramid building in front of the motel on Frontage Road, on the way to Friendly’s restaurant after taking my grandmother grocery shopping. I miss going to Bradlee’s to see Santa come in on a helicopter at Christmas time.
I miss going to Tweed New Haven Airport & watching the planes take off & land, and going to Fort Hale Park to watch the ships passing by far out in the Long Island Sound. I miss the sight of the huge oil tanks lining the piers when driving down 1-95. I miss the Gothic architecture of the buildings in downtown New Haven, and the Yale area. I miss the black wrought iron fence that surrounded the downtown “Green” where I used to like to feed the pigeons. I miss shopping at Caldor, Bradlees, and Mammoth Mart. I miss going to Frank’s Garage on Elm Street to visit my uncle and visit with Sam, the German Shepherd. I loved bringing him treats.
I miss my house and all it’s quirky features, like the water that wouldn’t run at more than a trickle. It used to take me a
year to get a decent bath drawn in our old-fashioned claw foot tub. A shower in those days consisted of attaching a short rubber hose with showerhead to the faucet and washing your hair while sitting down! I miss drawing pictures and bringing them down to my neighbor, Ms. Miller, who would reciprocate my gift with homemade chocolate chip cookies! My mouth is watering right now just thinking of them! Food tasted so very different in the days when it was homemade! I miss the birthday parties I used to attend for my cousins & nieces (before my nephews were born) and my 2 best friends since kindergarten, Rosalyn, and Gina (who are still my friends today!).
I miss going to sleep at night after loosing a tooth, and waking up the next morning to find money under my pillow. I will always remember how patient the tooth fairy was when I
left her a 2-page questionnaire in the doll carriage next to my bed, trying to uncover all her mysteries! (I say her b/c after that questionnaire, I learned she was a girl! ;)I miss Colorforms, and Lightbright. I miss Perfection, Operation, and Numbers Up. I miss Trouble, and Headache. I miss my Fisher Price Little People House, and my baby doll furniture that was so lifelike. I miss my Drowsy, Baby Alive, and Baby That-A-Way dolls. I miss my Barbie Townhouse, Friendship, and Dream Boat. And who can forget the Barbie bike, and pool! I miss my books, like Timmy Mouse, The Adventures of Mole & Troll, and Nancy Plays Nurse. I miss my little magnetic maze that helped a lost skunk find his way home.
I miss the M
r. Softie ice cream truck that stopped by the convalescent home next door to my house every day. My staple order was a vanilla cone with colored sprinkles. Was my dog’s favorite, too. I miss the summers spent swimming in the pools of my aunts, since we did not have one; and I miss the little kiddie wadding pools that I had! One even had a slide with a little railing – that was my absolute favorite! I miss my sandbox and the hours I’d spend sitting in it building sand castles. The sand always smelled so good when it was new!I miss my dad tossing me up on his shoulders & running out into the backyard with me whenever the convoy of military helicopters would fly overhead on Saturday afternoons, so that I could get a better view. I miss the sound of the weekly air raid sirens that used to go off at the firehouse down the hill every Saturday at noon. I miss going to T&M’s bakery with my mom after church on Sundays to get sweet rolls (Sweet croissants with a glaze & poppy seeds over the top. Mmmmm….), and all the errands I used to run around town with her. I miss the matching purple windbreaker jackets we used to have. I miss the summer holiday cookouts we used to have in our backyard, and roasting marshmallows over the warm coals after the fire died down.
The more I age, the more I find myself missing my childhood and my hometown. However, I am so lucky to have a very vivid memory to be able to go back in time and relive those moments like they are happening right now, and also to have pictures to help bring back those joyful childhood feelings.
