I recently attended a birthday party. For a ten-year-old. Specifically, for Mary’s son’s son. The party was your typical deal for a kid. Lots of other kids running around. Tacos. Cake. Presents.
Life at ten. I can’t recall much about my life, at ten, without prompts. Thankfully, my Mom took oodles of photos…. of everything. And I can jump back to year ten… and remember.
I announced that year, that I would be the first “girl” player on the Cincinnati Reds. My Grandpa Ed did not discourage me when I pronounced my intentions. Instead, he patted me on the arm and said he would buy the very first tickets to that game. This was how lucky I was as a kid.
I played softball back then. For our grade school. Our Lady of Mercy. And then, in the summertime, at North Riverdale Little League. We were warriors. We were.
I learned how to Square Dance at school. Board Games were one of my favorite things in the world. My most loved games were Clue, Masterpiece, and Waterworks… in that order. I loved to go swimming, every chance I got. And that Christmas, I received my first Magic Kit. My brother Jerry married his wife Betty. They were teenagers. They had a bun in the oven. No one would let me in on the big secret. But I knew there was a big secret.
At ten, I was hitting that awkward stage. I had cuteness early in life. It ended by the time I hit double digits.
That is the most of what I remember about being ten.
But some of the things I remember…. were instilled. The lessons I learned by the time I was ten.
I knew it was important to share, and also be play by the rules. Cheating was out. I learned to think for myself, to problem-solve, and to be logical about things. Some of the lessons, I had to practice every day. There was a “place for everything, and everything in its place.” I had to put things away and clean up my messes. I learned there were more people involved in life than just me.
And that Peanut Butter and Jelly on Wonder Bread…was magic. Every time.
Ten.
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Learning is not attained by chance. It must be sought for with ardor and attended to with diligence. — Abigail Adam
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A man who asks is a fool for five minutes. A man who never asks is a fool for life. — Chinese Proverb
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A moment’s insight is sometimes worth a life’s experience. — Oliver Wendell Holmes
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