root for the home team

people are funny…

The house and farm I grew up in is a subdivision now. A gated community. They put a wrought iron fence around the entire cotton field and built houses in it.

I'd say the neighborhood has changed quite a lot.

We all have our own memories of our neighborhood and the happy times spent there.
Places that I lived in and loved, I spent a lot of time and money creating beautiful gardens, where bees and butterlies and finches visited.  Even the local painters would come to sit in my garden and paint.  So it always stressed me when i would drive my previous homes and see the bushes and trees sawed down, and the  lawn and gardens gone to make room for the boat, trailer, second and third cars.
We had Mrs. Rudnik, a grouchy Polish lady who kept the balls that landed in her yard. No one dared put one foot on her property to try to retrieve a ball. 

I really love that picture. The sky. It looks so peaceful. That was a great story. After reading the comments, I was reminded of a situation. When I first moved up here, the area where I lived was all farm land and fields. Slowly but surely this gave rise to strip malls and fast food restaurants. Now we have traffic and stop lights. It takes forever to get anywhere and it is not pretty here anymore. Anyway, there used to be this small white house on the corner of Sitterly and Rt. 9. An older couple lived there. They had a screened in porch. I used to see them sitting in there in the evening, at at table with a lamp, probably playing cards or some kind of game. They had a huge garden, vegetables and the most beautiful flowers. I had always meant to stop and talk to her and ask her about her flowers. One day those people weren't there any more. The house was torn down and now it is a Hess station. 

Now I am thinking of Virginia Lee Burton's book 
The Little House. Jenni, do you suppose the children of that old couple came along and moved the house to a hillside with apples trees, a pond, and children playing?

lol @ tom!

Carla, in a perfect world.

That was a great read.The picture is lovely too.

Poor Mrs Grabowski i don't think she would have felt very comfortable on my street on the other hand  it might just have been what she needed :-)
Hockey is the national sport here,but soccer is definitely catching up.

When I was a kid, we all played baseball in the street.  If the batter  hit the ball into the open ditch in front of each house, they were automatically “out.” .  If you were one of the “fielders”, sometimes you'd let the ball roll in, so you could move up one spot. One of the big boys would get a stick and get the ball out of the  black greasy sewer water and use their foot to roll it clean in the grass.  

Nowadays, it is road hockey that is prevalent.  Isn't life interesting.

It's a strange enchantment, but when Mimi describes something, I want to do it.  I want to sit in her garden and watch the painters.  I want to play baseball in the street with her and her friends.  Boy, that picture sure looked COLD to me.  COLD was my only word for it, but when Jenni said it looked peaceful, I went back and looked.  Yes, it's peaceful, too.  If you're accustomed to the cold!  :)

I our neighborhood we have “the apartment people” and “the house people.”  It's an unfortunate divide.  The lady across the street one time came over and told me that I shouldn't allow my children to play with children of “African descent.”  After getting my blood pressure under control, I calmly informed her that my children are happy to play with any nice children, and that as long as everyone is happy, they will continue having a good time.  She walked away in a huff, but the kids never forgot.  Some of them were close enough to hear.  I don't know if all of them heard or not, but every once in awhile they'll ask me, “Do you remember when that lady came over and said…”?  It's their reference for understanding race relations in America.  An interesting morning.

I too love your photo … and your story! I'm one of your new friends here on Gaia …  and I've been reading back through your blogs and trying to catch up! You share such wonderful intimate details of life. Thank you.

The pink in your sky is very meaningful to me. I seem to be drawn to pink skies these days.

You and I would make good neighbors. I suspect my neighborhood was much like yours … 30 years ago, 20 years ago … 10 years ago and then 4 years ago … Me and my daughter moved in. I'm a single white woman and my daughter is black. I believe we fit right in. We belong. My neighbors …  have embraced us and welcomed us “into the fold”. My daughter played soccer all through elementary, middle school and this past year was the star “keeper” on her high school junior varsity team. She is a “natural”. Strong, determined, relentless. However, she claims that she won't play again next year as there are too many blonde “barbie types” on her team and she doesn't feel accepted. This is too bad. I'm not going to even try to talk her into it … as this her decision … her choice. I'll let her coach and her team do that work. She is great no matter what she does.

I used to think soccer scholarship … but now I am thinking Math, Science, Physics … as she is acing those courses!!! :-)

Your neighborhood looks so much like mine.

Hey Hey Martha,
 I would have loved to have you as a kid friend.  
And you would be welcome to join in on anything I was doing,  now and always.
We might get into trouble though, especially if we have maze along too.
Maze, did you curse when you were a kid,; and did you get your mouth washed out with soap ever?
I did  with RED Lifeboy/Lifebuoy  soap - YEEECCCKKAAAKKK ;>((

Thanks for your perspectives on community and changing neighborhoods.

I bet Maze did curse as a kid.  But never in a destructive way; rather in a colorful way.