The Last Generation

We may be the last generation to have lived through several things that today’s kids will never know, except, of course, by reading or seeing films of the old days or hearing their grandparents talk. Cell phones–when I was a teenager, these were still in the future. We didn’t carry phones with us. We had phones at home that hung on the wall or sat on the table. We also had telephone booths–remember those things Superman was always popping into? They required money to work. So, it was a wise idea to carry some change along with you, just in case you needed to phone home.

I know for sure that we were the last generation to ride in or drive a car without seat belts. Or, to ride on running boards. This was very unsafe, I admit, and we weren’t allowed to do it unless we were riding up a short driveway and then, not often. We also rode in the back of pick-up trucks. In our family, we had to sit flat on the floor, no standing up or sitting on the sides. But, what fun.

In our family, for a time our house was heated by a wood stove and my mother’s cookstove burned wood for fuel. Not everyone my age lived through this, but I did. I remember gathering twigs– kindling for a fire–bringing it in and laying it atop paper, then adding small sticks of firewood, then the larger wood. Fires started with dead wood, but after it was going, green wood went on top to keep it blazing longer. We had to carefully stack the logs to leave room between them for air to get through. We’d better not forget to open the draft on the stove either, or the room would fill with smoke.

And, those wringer washing machines! Oh yes. For a while, it was fun to run clothes through the ringer from soapy tub to the first rinse tub, then to the second rinsing. What was not fun was getting a finger or hand caught in the wringer. Lugging a basket of wet wash to the line in the yard, hanging up each piece and pinning it in place was memorable, but not really joy-filled. If the day was cold, or below freezing, it was even less of a lark.

I’m sure many others my age didn’t experience not having running water in the house, but I did. We had a well and a water bucket and a dipper. The bucket sat on a table in the kitchen, the dipper floating on top. Funny–nobody minded because nobody had anything different.

I also remember radio programs. Each afternoon, there was Mr. Jolly’s Hotel for Pets, or The Lone Ranger, or Big John and Sparky. We enjoyed those! No pictures, but our minds supplied those. And, of course, soap operas if the adult women had time to listen. My grandmother, who was wheel chair bound, looked forward to those soap operas each day. I still remember the theme song for Lorenzo Jones. Then, there was Young Widow Brown, and several others.

Crime was rare in my neck of the woods and crimes against children was extremely rare. There were things grown-ups talked about, but they made sure we didn’t hear. Words that have become commonplace in some areas today were definitely a big taboo. People who used vulgar language were vulgar people. 

But, there are other things I experienced that are available to kids today–lying under a shade tree watching cloud shapes chase each other across the sky, feeling the sun on your back as you dig in the earth to plant vegetables or flowers and the dark, loamy smell of damp soil, reading a favorite book curled up in bed. Yes, there are plenty of connections with the past. But, there are other things that are gone. Some, I’m glad to leave behind , but some I sincerely miss. I think, more than the actual way of life, I miss the people and our old-fashioned but faithful beliefs. I’m thankful that my generation is not the last to experience love of family and friends. That is the thread that runs from generation to generation. I’m glad that isn’t changing.