Remember when?

I received news last night that a guy I went to school with passed away. He was younger than me (44 years old). I wasn't a friend of his and we weren't even acquaintances. My brother knew him better than me. He had a heart attack and died in the blink of an eye. This death is affecting me today. It's not because I feel like I've lost a close friend (although I do grieve for his family). It's because of the reminder of the brevity of our time on this earth. Hearing of a relatively young person dying is like cold water to the face. I guess you could say news like this causes me to be in a reflective mood. I am remembering things this morning that I thought I had forgotten forever. It's a strange place to be. However, I am also reminded that my treasure is not here on earth. My treasure is in heaven. My earthly home is temporary. A miniscule speck in the grand scheme of things. My time with my Heavenly Father will be forever.

BUT! That's not the reason for this post. I only posted that stuff above to kind of give you an idea of my frame of mind today.

Tami and I are in our late 40's. Not really that old, but old enough to realize that time is a strange thing. We talk all the time about how quickly the kids have grown up. How being married for almost 22 years has just flown by. How being grandparents quickly changed our lives (for the better). And generally how time seems to accelerate as you get older. Obviously time is constant. The only thing that changes is our perception of it. For example... Christmas comes on December 25th every year. When you are a kid it seems the wait for Christmas will never end. When you're an adult you can't believe Christmas is here already. The calendar didn't change... your brain did :-)

All this reflection about time has caused me to think:

Remember when the only time kids watched TV was Saturday morning cartoons and The Wonderful World of Disney on Sunday evening?

Remember when your mom told you to play outside and if you came inside you better be bleeding or dying?

Remember when you tattled on your younger siblings and you got in just as much trouble as they did?

Remember when summer days and nights used to go on forever? (Did you play Ghost in the Graveyard and Kick the can?)

Remember when you ate what mom cooked for supper or you didn't eat at all?

Remember when the phone was attached to the wall and all your parents ever said was. "GET OFF THE PHONE!"? Believe it or not there was a time when everybody DID NOT have a cell phone!

Remember when drinking pop was a rare treat? Remember when pop came in glass bottles?

Remember when staying home from school because you were sick was a big deal? Mom used to make me hot tea and Cream of Wheat (I felt so special!)

Remember when you had to listen to the radio ALL DAY in hopes of hearing your favorite song? There was a time when iPods did not exist!

Remember when you had a crush on that girl in school? Boy did she ever turn out differently than you expected! (and aren't you glad you didn't marry her?)

Remember when going out to eat was an unusual event? Dad used to take us to White Castle. We'd eat there and they had those cool jukeboxes hanging on the wall. We also had to crawl under the bathroom door because it cost a dime to pee. (Would you ever let your kids crawl on the floor of a public restroom? YUCK!)

Remember when your friend's mom could swat your bottom and your parents would applaud her and then beat your butt again for whatever it was you did?

Remember when your teacher could swat your bottom and your parents would applaud her and then beat your butt again for misbehaving at school?

Remember when getting an ice cream cone made it seem like you had died and gone to heaven?

Remember when going to Kings Island was like a vacation in itself? Season passes? Are you kidding me? We didn't even go every year!

Remember when your dad said he would stop the car and eliminate any problems in the back seat? (AND HE MEANT IT!!!!!)

Remember when your dad would call you from three rooms away and then tell you change the television channel?

Remember when staying up late was fun? Now if I make it past 10:00 I know there will be consequences tomorrow.

Remember when you got out of bed and felt like a million bucks? Now I wake up and wonder why my (fill in body part) hurts. Last night I hurt my shoulder picking up something off the floor.

Remember when you made fun of your grandpa for falling asleep and snoring in his easy chair? It's not so funny anymore. My recliner and I are very close friends now.

Remember when it was funny when your mom wanted to yell at you, but couldn't remember your name? It's not so funny now, is it?

Remember when going to the grocery store with your mom was like a field trip? Now I have to psych myself up to go to the grocery. (and all I do is complain about the prices while I'm there).

Remember when your parents' bedroom was the only air conditioned room in the whole house? And when it was really hot the kids got to sleep on the floor in their room? I'll let you figure out why that must have stunk for moms and dads.

Remember when you'd fight with the kids in the neighborhood and then you'd be best friends an hour later?

Remember when you carried a comb in your back pocket and thought you looked stylish with feathered hair and parachute pants?

Remember when you were mortified to go to school with a giant pimple on your face? Now I go out of the house without shaving, in sweat pants and t-shirt with holes in it. Who do I need to impress?

Remember when playing video games was a treat because you had to go the arcade and put quarters in the slot (and every hand-held device wasn't a portable arcade)? Remember when you always tried to get the high score on Pac-Man?

Remember when there was no smut on TV and everything was left to your teenage imagination?

Remember when networks interrupted regular programming it was for a really important reason? Now all news is "Breaking News!". And by the way... do you remember when there were 3 channels on TV and not 200?

Remember when you were a kid and you were jealous because the adults got to do all the fun stuff and didn't have to follow rules? Then you grew up and realized being an adult wasn't all it was cracked up to be? Kids today grow up too fast!

Remember when...........?????????