Cmoneyspinner
Several Virilyans have shared childhood memories with this community (examples below).
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Related Posts ~ Childhood Memories of Other Virilyans:
Not all childhood memories are good ones
CarnivalTime: Childhood Memories
Childhood memory “I am going home”
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I find that the older I get the sweeter many of my childhood memories become, so I want to share as well. Here are seven specific memories.
#1 Memory Number 1: My Hometown
Growing up in Miami, Florida, there was a diverse population of peoples from various parts of the world. The best way to experience this diversity was and is through the food of these people. There was soul food (African-American cuisine), Jewish food, Bahamian food … good food everywhere! When the Cubans fleeing Castro were allowed to come and make their new homes in Miami? The food got even better!
#2 Memory Number 2: Mickey Mouse Club
#3 Memory Number 3: Sister Clariece
At age 8, my mother made a major decision to enroll me in Catholic school. She truly believed that, in our neighborhood, the Catholic schools were the best! She was very determined for me to get a good education. We were not Catholics but that didn't matter to my mom. I was 8 years old. Should it have mattered to me? I don't know. What I do know is that it was the first time in my life I had ever seen a nun. Women who wore clothing that covered them completely from head to toe. Women who were really smart! Excellent teachers. Every one of them!
As time went on the “nun's habit” or the clothing they wore began to change. The hemline of their dresses was below the knee instead of around the ankles. They could show a little bit of their hair, even though their head was still covered. Etc. What the sisters wore made no difference to me. It was a brand new school and I was terrified. My first meeting with my fully-robed 5th-grade teacher, Sister Clariece, left a lasting impression. You could not see her hair at all. But she had this sweet kind face and her facial features were even more noticeable because her face was framed by the white cloth that was a part of her head covering. She smiled, welcomed me to the class, and made me feel completely at ease on my very first day. I will never forget her.
#4 Memory Number 4: Hurricane Season
Hurricane season in Miami, Florida. Besides the fun fact that hurricanes meant we didn't have to go to school, my late mother always made it fun with sandwiches and games, etc. I didn't realize those forceful winds could be very dangerous until I was much older. We survived all of our hurricanes with minimal damage to our home and property. Thank the Lord! I don't remember all the names but I do remember wondering why all the hurricanes had female names (Cleo, Betsy, Camille, etc.). LOL. They've since changed that. Now some hurricanes are given guy names.
#5 Memory Number 5: Family Fun Games
Checkers and Chinese checkers. My late father had two dear friends who always came over to our house. My dad and his friends would sit on the front porch and play checkers all day long! My sister was given Chinese checkers as a gift one Christmas. My sister, my brothers and I would play for hours. My mom knew where her children were. LOL. One time I overheard my mother's friend asked her why she didn't complain about my dad spending so much time on the front porch playing checkers with his friends. She responded: “I know where he is.” LOL.
#6 Memory Number 6: Girl Scouts
#7 Memory Number 7: The Boob Tube
The Boob Tube. For some reason, people called television the boob tube. But I can't imagine what my life would have been like if we didn't have a TV. It was entertaining and educational. The cartoons on Saturday mornings were worth waiting a whole week to watch. But Sunday night TV was the best! The Ed Sullivan Show, Bonanza, and Perry Mason, who never lost a court case! There were movies that didn't have nudity and profanity but they were still about gangsters and bad people. LOL. Nature programs like Mutual of Omaha's Wild Kingdom and of course, Walt Disney's Wonderful World of Color. I heart Tinker Bell and Jiminy Cricket! 🙂
Our first television was given to us. It was second hand and could only show a picture if it was dark. So we watched it in the dark. Only at night? Oh no! We went undercover! If it was daytime, we all got up under a heavy blanket and made it like a tent. We held the blanket up – one person on one side of the TV and another person on the other side of the TV and that blocked out the light, so we could watch our shows during the daytime or whenever there were lights on. Once again. My mom knew where her children were. LOL.
