A few months ago, my husband M-Boo was thinking about his childhood and how those early years provided him with some happy memories. He then asked me about the best years of my life. Like M-Boo I too felt that the early years of childhood were my nicest spent days.
Here is what I had to say: The best years of my life!
I group my best years in two different groups. My best years were when I lived in Woomera (SA) and Amberley (QLD).
I lived at Woomera from about ages two to five. I then lived in Qld ages five to ten.
Great memories of my Woomera years:
- Fourth of July fireworks display with a rock band playing beneath.
- My pretty dresses with patterned fabrics and little belts that I got to wear.
- My first pair of roller skates. I taught myself to skate. My skates were specially made proper black skate boots – leather, metal, red rubber wheels. They had a particular smell which today’s inline skates do not have.
- Painting and making things.
- Playing with my one really good friend – Julianne Day.
- Kindergarten – making a paper plate Santa face, watching boiled Easter eggs being dyed, playing with water boat trough.
- Looking at the sky one night and being awed by my own smallness in such a large universe.
Great memories of Amberley:
- Riding my bicycle all over the street, and doing tricks like resting my feet on the handlebars.
- Saturday morning classes & roller disco at the skating rink. I had pink/white skates. I earned 3 skating stars.
- Spring/Summer BBQs with the other RAAF families. Playing tiggy and murder in the dark.
- Watching tv – Astroboy, Jem, Care Bears, Transformers, Punky Brewster, Voltron (The Lions), The Kids of Degrassi Street (precursor to the Degrassi Jnr High & Degrassi High series’).
- Arts and craft at school.
- My Jem paperdolls.
- Librarian reading to the class a new storybook.
- Tuckshop lunch – Shepherds Pie.
- Playing with my dolls by myself.
- Climbing trees.
- asking my parents to buy hot chips when we went shopping. Or stopping for a milkshake and scones for morning tea.
- Visiting my cousins – Alicia and Peter. I really liked their home and playing with them.
- Horse riding schools – I actually didn’t mind the smell of leather and horses.
- I had lots of fun playing with Lee, Alex and Dale Hanson (their mum babysat me).
- Playing dress ups – I had a box full of different costumes.
- Pretending to be horses with the other girls in the schoolyard.
- Pretending to be robots with the other boys in the schoolyard.
- Turning my bedroom into a safari set with my old bed sheets.
- Spending a day at the Wet’n’Wild each year – water slides, warm weather, and eating Pluto Puffs.
- Spinning in circles with other kids in the evening, till we collapse and watch the sky keep turning.
- Fantasising about being Jem/Jerrica.
- Playing with my remote control car.
- Setting up the Christmas tree.
- Opening Birthday & Christmas presents.
- Bicycle bouncing down the road when I hit a large stone.
- Brand new mini tent for Christmas – sleeping in the back yard for a few days.
- Spending summer days at the beach – using my boogie board. I was a water baby. Got burnt a few times, but it was for a good cause (having fun).
- Thursday dinner, twice a month, at the Sargeants Mess – all Sgts and their families were invited to the dinner. Curry was provided. Would run around with the other kids, some of whom were in my class. We played beyond exhaustion. We were so busy.
- Dad finds his train set and helps me set it up in my bedroom. I played with it for ages.
- Trying to make clothes for my dolls.
- Splashing around at the RAAF swimming pool.
- Friday night kids disco at the local hall.
So many nice things that make me feel better just thinking about it. I guess my Queensland years had more of an impact than those spent in SA.
