I keep on
dwelling on the past
dreaming of
a life that is no more
When TVs
were black and white
Where
Central Heating did not exist
We sat round
a fire, toasting bread upon the open flame
Windows
would rattle when cars went past,
Thin panes
of glass, that couldn’t deter the frosty nights that led to
the growth
of stalagmites
Black were
the nights when the power was cut, candles flickered
We
entertained ourselves with stories and song, warmed by
blankets we sang along.
A Compendium of games was our Xbox. Blow
football, Snakes and
Ladders and
Ludo games all played with the precious dice.
The mornings
were cold and our coats were thick we would find joy
poking ice
with a stick.
Walking to
school was the order of the day, dad took the car only
one per
family in those beautiful days.
School was
small all Infants in one class, Juniors filled the other
room and free
milk came in glass.
Covered books,
encyclopaedia and nature cards
Sums in pouches and
ink wells on our desks, filled with pencil shavings
.
Dinner
time and semolina, hot pot with a crust and rice
pudding with
skin all served from a tin.
Into the
playground we would go, all chalked out for skittle ball.
Footballs
were leather and coated not, they got heavy when it
rained a lot.
The bell
would ring and we stood in line then we marched into the
classroom
where Beta books would fill our time.
At the end of
the day we would journey home
and on the
way we would stop to spend our penny in the
sweet shop. A
bubbly and quiz, 4 blackjacks or Mccowans chews
On
special days we may get 3p to buy a packet of Spangles or
Strikers or a
Sherbet dib dab.
Alas it was
time for our Tea, chips cooked in the frying pan
with some
added treat like a slice of spam.
If we were
good before we went to bed a crust of bread covered in
jam would
make us sleep like new born lambs.
