I guess that’s something else we’ve lost along the way. Sadly, I don’t know if parents would allow the interactions we had with Asbury to happen here in 2024. And it never failed that when we had one of our epic games of wiffle ball, football or maybe even Red Rover, Asbury would come outside with a bowl of candy, a plate of cookies and a pitcher of lemonade for us. In fact, that vacant lot where we congregated, often more than a dozen kids, belonged to Asbury. I just remember him as being a kind, gentle, always-smiling man who loved the kids in the neighborhood. I have thought often that I wished I had taken notes or kept a journal during those childhood days so I could recall exact details about Asbury. An elderly man that all the neighborhood kids called “Asbury” lived there alone. Directly across the street from the first house I lived in on North Street was a simple, gray house with a front porch. My recollection from those days on North Street started me thinking of the many people from that neighborhood and one elderly gentleman also came to mind. Asbury sitting on his front steps with Susie Dugger. If you’re young and reading this and you have every wondered why your parents or grandparents are stubborn and hard-headed, look no further than those highly-spirited and competitive neighborhood games from yester-year where determination, grit, toughness and a will-to-win were honed. Interestingly, at both locations there was a vacant lot that became a hangout for youngsters from the neighborhood for games of every competition imaginable. Then we moved three blocks west to a much nicer and larger house that was one block west of Route 148, but still on North Street. Even as a kid I always found it interesting that North Street runs east and west?! There’s no wonder I am sometimes confused!įrom the time I was born until I was 12 years old my family lived in a small house on North Street, east from Route 148. If you were to travel north on Route 148 out of Sesser, three blocks from the 4-Way stop is where North Street intersects with the state highway. Here’s a little geography lesson on North Street. There were two locations on that wonderful little street, but North Street was home and still holds countless great memories for me. Let me explain!įrom the time I was born until I left home at the ripe old age of 18, I lived on North Street in Sesser. I want to continue on that same theme this month. Sadly, I don’t think it’s something that will ever be regained. Many people reached out to me about that column, all people in my age group, and agreed that with the loss of neighborhood interaction with friends we have lost something very special through the decades. That little blast about the past was prompted by a column I wrote last month lamenting the fact that young folks don’t play outside anymore and that 21st Century gizmos and gadgets have sadly taken the place of those wonderful sandlot games of (name the sport) that many of us enjoyed in the days of our youth. In short, should we act, dress, eat, talk, retire, sleep and interact with others based on “the day you were born.” In short, I believe our age is a number and we’re only as old as we feel! In other words, being a certain age isn’t a doesn’t mean we should be grouchy, irritable or quit work and things we enjoy doing. I heard that song for the first time recently and that single, simple line has caused me to do a lot of thinking and soul-searching. Asbury and the Dugger sisters (clockwise from bottom left) Susie, Connie, Darby and Nancy.
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