I’m a baby boomer through and through being born in 1956, growing up with the mini shirt, knee high lace-up boots, hot pants and platform shoes that everyone just wanted to die for. This story depicts my early childhood as I remember it.

We lived in my pop’s (grandad’s) house with my mother, two sisters, one older, the other younger and an older brother with two years age difference between us. Pop was a police sergeant and rather strict but we loved him dearly. Meals from mum were simple, like steak and vegetables or shephard’s pie. One of my favourite things to do before mealtimes was to get the mincing machine out, attach it to the table, put the meat in and start cranking the handle. Out came the meat all stringy looking and I would sneak a bite or two before it was to be used for the pie.

I’ll never forget the time my mum tried to make me eat sheep’s tongue, lambs fry and brains. She told me it was good for you and tasted okay. Of course I didn’t believe her after taking one look at it and deciding it was definitely un-appealing to a small child. Never did get it down! I gagged running from the kitchen.

I also shared a room with my older sister for many years and it was like we had an imaginary line across the room. My half was neat and tidy, hers all messy and I’m not even sure how we made it through this period in our lives without some kind of physical violence. Sisterly love must have taken over somehow! I was a shy child and my sister says she really didn’t even notice me until I was aged two.

Being very shy as a child and speaking only when spoken to for fear of saying the incorrect thing, I amazed myself one day. We were on a school outing at the local swimming pool and upon leaving I spotted my mum with our uncle Bob. Now this was a man I said very little to and only saw once a fortnight when he came visiting bearing gifts of lollies for us kids. As I approached them, I threw my arms around my uncle and gave him the biggest hug you could imagine. I reckon he must have been as surprised as I was, for I had never done this to anyone in my life. I’ll never forget doing this and so pleased now that I did, for he is no longer with us. I remember him as a very gentle man and one who seemed to make my mum happy.

Our playtime comprised of simple pleasures like playing with our dolls or in my brother’s case playing with his toy cars. My younger sister lined her dolls up on whatever she could find around the house as chairs and pretended she was the teacher. A very abrupt teacher at that! With ruler in hand to smack the children if they got out of line and yelling out the command of “no talking to one another while in class”. I loved to sit for hours and dress my dolls up in their pretty little clothes and my brother would take his cars under the house and scoop out dirt roads with his hands. This then gave him hours of playtime pleasure. As for my older sister I really cannot remember her playtime activities. The only thing that stands out in my mind is from our school days when she spent most of her spare time studying.

Another activity we did as children was to make pretend meat pies. We would keep the foil trays from real pies and go underneath the house where we used water and dirt to make our pies. Great fun!

Back in our childhood days there were no computers, hand held phones, electronic games, fancy cameras and in some homes not even a television. Most people did have a radio and I remember clearly when my grandad bought our first television set. We were all so excited about being able to watch black and white movies.

Hot summer days we did not have the luxury of a swimming pool. We would play water activities under the hose that we’d throw over the clothesline, running in and out of the water with screams of laughter.

Over the years we had a couple of dogs as pets but I remember having a small turtle that I was very fond of and sadly one day he went missing. I was playing with him in the back yard when my mum called to me to help at the fruiterer’s truck. I sprang to my feet and when I was finished helping out I returned to the spot where I had been playing only to find my pet turtle was not there. OH! NO! He was nowhere to be seen. With tears in my eyes I searched high and low, but alas I could not find him. My mum assured me that he was allright and most likely made his way down to the river where he had originally come from. Like all good mums, I now know she was trying to make me feel better, but at the time her words didn’t stop the disappointment of losing my precious pet.

School days! Well that was another thing.

Our mum took much pride in dressing us in new shoes, hat and school uniform. I felt very important in shiny new shoes and neatly pressed clothes but my first day at school was still absolutely terrifying and as soon as I had the chance I was out of there. Somehow I managed to slip away and commenced walking home. Mind you at five years of age I really would not have been sure which way that was but the Lord must have headed me in the right direction. I’m now out of the school grounds walking along the side of the road. I didn’t get very far before a car pulled up and a voice said “get in.” It was my mum and grandad heading out to do the day’s shopping. They didn’t feel sorry for me at all and returned me to school.

Every day was a struggle for me because I was so shy and unsure of myself. I would cry all the way to school. Somehow I had attached myself to a girl called Lynette who would come to the car every morning and stay by my side all day long. She was a great comfort and a great friend all throughout my school years. Early school days (grades 1 & 2) consisted of rows of small flip-top desks, slate boards the size of computer mouse pads and chalk to write with and definitely no speaking in the classroom. Those that did occasionally speak would get a hard slap on the hand with the teacher’s ruler. In the higher grades chatting in class would lead to detention after the finish of school. Usually this meant staying back for 15 minutes to half an hour. Grade 5 was my curse when the girl behind me spoke. The teacher thought the words came from my mouth and couldn’t be convinced otherwise. As you can imagine I wasn’t real impressed with my teacher or the student that sat behind me that day.

Travelling on the bus to school would cost threepence (in today’s currency that’s 3 cents) and with a schilling in our pocket (10 cents) we’d head off to the shops and purchase lollies given to us in large paper bags that were filled to the max.

Days and years have gone by and things have definitely changed dramatically. Today’s technology is amazing and who knows where it will lead us and the children of the future.

By Terri Sander