My Childhood

What made your childhood "typical?" What set it apart?

Sometimes I think I must have had a pretty "typical" childhood, since I don't remember much about it! I know I had loving parents and relatives and friends, so I always felt secure and loved. We weren't rich in the way of "things" but we weren't especially poor either, just pretty average. We didn't really know any "rich" people, and because we weren't bombarded with media, we weren't so aware of the potential of material goods.

We celebrated birthdays and Christmas and other holidays with lots of friends and relatives. Mom always invited people over for Sunday dinner, and many other times as well. Everybody called her "mom" because she was just like a mom to everybody, and dad always supported her in that.

Because dad was a teacher, and mom mostly was a stay-at-home mom while we were growing up, we had quite a lot of holidays, and we traveled quite a bit, visiting friends and family, and going on lots of camping trips.

The church was always a really important part of our lives, and we went, when available, to church, Sunday School, Sunday evening service, mid-week prayer service, children's clubs, and camps. My dad was always really involved in youth work, through church youth groups, and through Inter School Christian Fellowship in the schools, so there were many times when we had teens meet in our home.

We often went for family drives in the hills, hikes, and other outdoor activities. We had family worship every day, and also family reading times often. We did things with family and friends, things that didn't cost much, but were fun and drew us close together.

Written: Dec 26, 2007