If I could turn back time........

Me too. The reality is, the sex offenders and child molesters were out there back then too. As we also know from the publicity, there were plenty of them *inside* our homes as well.

I know, as a parent, I was wary of allowing my children to go off and wander/explore on their own but not because I was overly worried about sex offenders/child molesters per se. I was far more worried about the increased traffic and the speed of that traffic, compared to when I was growing up. Also, as clueless has highlighted, growing up I could have knocked on any of my neighbours doors if there was a problem; when my children were growing up, I barely knew the families either side of us.

The world is faster paced now.

 

Majority open in Port Talbot and Swansea offer free parking on Sundays year round, would have thought as you live in or near to the Capital, Cardiff you would get the same.

 

As kids, me and my mates would wander miles and be out all day. Sometimes we would get a bus from our village to Luton (5-6 miles away) and go to the cinema. I can also remember cycling 50 miles round trip (boy was I sore, as I had just got the bike). Other times we would be on building sites making dens from a batch of 'A frames' waiting to go on the house roofs.
Other things: Skating, skateboarding, golf, making go karts from planks, pram wheels, and rope. Thankfully we never had electronic games back then.
Mum and dad never seemed overly concerned, but we were probably always on their minds I expect. I frequently got home about 11pm in my mid teens after walking home from the sports centre in the nearest town (2.5 miles away). I can honestly say, 'I had a great childhood'.

 

You are of course quite correct. Take no notice. I do find though that as I get older, I find myself reflecting, and since New Year's Eve is a time for reflection AND looking forward, it seems more acute. I'm alright now

 

PS: You were alright before too

 

Today was the day (years ago now, obviously) that I became a mother for the very first time. I can still remember how awed I was by this tiny human being; all the hopes and dreams I had for that baby! I also recall feeling a sense of panic; how would I cope; what if I got things wrong? It was a poignant day then (and, to a small degree, now) because that baby was born on the anniversary of my father's death (albeit a number of years before) and when my mother travelled up and arrived to welcome her new grandchild, I knew she was thinking about the love of her life and the significance of the day.
I think we do have a tendency to become that bit more reflective as we get older.

 

That's very touching, thanks for sharing.
It's funny how dates can make one reflect. A much loved aunt was buried on my birthday, and my father was buried on my wife's birthday, a few months later. There are other rather curious coincidences too. I was born on a Thursday, my mother was born on a Thursday and my son? You guessed it. Weird eh?

 

Awwww, I am glad I started this thread. It's been........'emotional'

 

On the subject of coincidental dates, ours is coming up in a couple of weeks. I didn't know my grandparents on my father's side very well. They died when on I was still little. The grandparents on my mother's side I knew well and they lived to a good age.

My granddad died in December 1992 aged 82. 3 years later, December 95 my dad died, aged 63, of cancer. My gran lived until she was 94, dying in 2004. She actually died in November, jumping the gun you might say, bless her. She died peacefully asleep in her armchair. Interestingly , I didn't know until the day of the funeral, the care worker that was with her was somebody I knew from primary school. Even though I hadn't seen her for over 20 years, I recognised her instantly.

My dad died on 9th December 1995 which was the day before my mum's 59th birthday.

Last year my mum was 80. I had spent the entire year organising a big birthday party. I sought out and invited everybody who ever knew her including an old school friend who we haven't seen for a long time. I invited ex neighbours, ex work mates, current friends, past friends, you name them, I found them. I ended up with about 90 names. I would say 50 or so turned up on the day. Not a bad gathering. A cousin from Devon stayed the weekend with us. The school friend from Norfolk came. Ex neighbour came from Northampton.

3 days before the party my mum fell. She fractured her shoulder and cracked her pelvis. She was in hospital for 3 months. Needless to say she missed the party.

G.

 

My Mothers Father died around 1940 in London, leaving behind a wife(my grandmother) and two sisters to face the blitz in WW2.
My other grand father died in 1952ish (he spent some time in the trenches in WW1), so I never met either of them.
Both had stories to tell, but not much passed on.

 

If I could turn back time I would probably change everything. I've always been shy, reserved and avoided confrontation at all costs.

If I could go back I would asked out all the girls I fancied. Of course if I'd been successful with the first one I might never have met the others. Who knows which one of them would have been the right one, if any. I might have had childten. Who knows.

I've never had a job that fulfilled me. My passion is history. I would love to be involved with living history. I might have joined a re-enactments group but I've always worked weekends. Plus I wouldn't know which one to join. I guess it wouldn't matter that much. There is also a finance aspect to joining these groups.

To acquire an indepth knowledge of history requires a lot of reading. That is a stumbling block for me. I have never enjoyed reading. I learn by drip feeding. Once I learn the context everything else just slots into place.

In my youth I use to compete for my local athletics club. I was ok. I wasn't a record breaker but I was competitive. Again I had to work weekends so that all went out of the window.

So these are some of the things that could have been different. Different isn't necessarily better. Its just different.

G.