Summer vacation

With tomorrow being the last day of school in Cabell County, someone asked me last week what my best memories of summer vacation were.

I can't say what my "best" memories were, but I can say what my strongest ones were. On Labor Day, the last day of summer vacation, I would go down to the Ohio River by myself. With some flat stones to skip across the water, I would think about the three months since Memorial Day... Of riding walking behind a pickup truck, throwing bales of hay into the bed, and walking to the barn to help put them in the loft... Of walking the riverbank looking for interesting rocks, driftwood and tennis balls... Of having gone to the county fair and seeing a lot of my school friends outside a school environment... Of tasting the apples, tomatoes and other produce we grew, and going it with my father to sell it at the old produce market where the Big Sandy Superstore Arena now stands... Of riding bikes miles from home... Of walking miles from home...

Speaking of which, I was out and about yesterday. It was a beautiful day, and I saw nary a kid outside. Not shooting hoops or sitting on a guardrail talking or riding a bike or doing anything. Back when I was young, being outdoors was a lot more fun and a lot more comfortable than being indoors. Compared with those days, I hardly ever see kids outside anymore. My own kids can't stand being in the house, even when the air conditioner is running and the temperature outside is 90 degrees. What's going on?