Good Old Days?

Written in response to https://lifeafter50forwomen.com/category/sunday-poser/

In some ways, my past was the good old days. As children, we socialised more. The old rule of going indoors when the street lights went on was something we understood. Although we never strayed far from the street we lived in. There was always one parent keeping a watchful eye over us. Mum and Dad always made sure I was safe. There is a close bond between my siblings. If I couldn’t talk to my parents they were always there.

I’m not saying we weren’t in danger, but as kids we stuck together. It is definitely more dangerous now. You can be sitting in your own bedroom and some parents are totally unaware of who their children are talking to. Most have a mobile and it is like they are holding a mini computer in their hands without any protection against those who seek to hurt them.

I wouldn’t like to be a parent these days.

I’m not saying television had the same influence when I was little. But it was different because there were set times we watched our programmes. Normally between four and six in the afternoon. Once the news was on, we did our homework and, around nine with a cup of hot milk and a few biscuits, we went to bed. Now even children’s television is aired all day and night.

There was much more recycling because the milkman used to collect our empties to refill them for the next morning. We would only buy the food we would eat, rather than wasting anything. It was simple food, but we never went hungry. Now we go shopping once a week and the amount we throw away – when children are starving in other parts of the country – is horrifying. Plastic bottles of water, plastic wrapping in food, plastic surrounding toys should be stopped.

However, there were times in the past when electricity was only on for three days a week. It was seen as normal when the lights went out. There so were many strikes because of an unfair pay system. There wasn’t really a minimum wage, and my parents worked hard, but for little money. Racism was not only accepted, but people were treated differently without even a second thought. Posters were legally allowed in hotel windows saying ‘no dogs, no Irish, no Blacks.’ Not only that, but women were treated differently. In school we weren’t allowed to learn metal work or physics and had to fight to wear trousers in the winter. There were many forms of discrimination, but it was seen as normal.

I wouldn’t say the ”Good Old Days” as it was a mixture of good and bad, but then life is like a roller coaster. We remember the good events in our life, just as we remember the bad. Isn’t that how we learn from our mistakes. We live in a more accepting society, but there is still much we can do better.