Stoop

If you read any of my writing you know that I love words. While I was at the hospital, waiting as they operated on my brother, I brought a book to read. It talked about sitting on the “stoop”. The only context I had for the word was something my father often said “Don’t stoop to their level.” So I was a little confused.

I found some interesting references:

“Similarly, while on an errand, one would stop and converse with neighbors sitting on their stoops. Within an urban community, stoop conversations helped to disseminate gossip and reaffirm casual relationships. Similarly, it was the place that children would congregate to play stoop ball.”

So that lead me to another question. “What is stoop ball?”

“Stoop ball definition, a game resembling baseball, played in a street, schoolyard, or other confined paved area, in which a ball is thrown forcibly against a stairway or wall so that it rebounds into the air, bases and runs being awarded depending on the number of bounces the ball takes before being caught by the opposing player or team.”

I wonder if my Mom was aware of all these things. Probably not, since she never lived in a big city.  She did however talk to me often about “stooping to the lowest level”. It is rarely a good choice.