The best of both worlds

As a child my year was divided into two parts. I would spend September to June living in the city and July to August living on my grandparents’ farm. The first three-quarters were focused on school and the activities surrounding it. Although I was an excellent student, the hours of sitting in a classroom did not thrill me. Living in the city did afford me the opportunity to go to the Saturday morning movies, visit the store windows in downtown Pittsburgh at Christmas, and attend the local amusement park. Living in the city also meant breathing in all the particulates spewing out of the steel mills in the area. Imagine the air filled with the fragrance of rotten eggs from the sulfur dioxide. Escaping the city during the summer months allowed me the freedom to roam the woods that surrounded the farm as well as learn about the flora and fauna that are a part of farm life. One of my chores was to weed the garden allowing me to partake in sampling the fresh strawberries leaving little to make it to the table. The air was fresh and clean devoid of the byproducts of the mills. My least favorite fragrance there was that of the pigpens. Still better than what the mills produced. My days in the classroom were replaced with days of doing what I pleased. This allowed me to experience a balance in life each one replete with its own set of expectations. How did you experience your world in your childhood?

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