I am thinking of my very best 'toy' as a youngster living in a rural section near Pine Bluff, AR that my sweet parents encouraged me and my lil brother to play with.
It was a discarded 16 inch tire. No telling how many miles we put on that tire and another like it pushing them bare footed around and around our lil house on the hill. Yes, my daddy was so wise to bring those tires to us that negated having to mow grass near our house. IN fact, Mama would sweep the yard of twigs and leaves from the Walnut tree very near our house.
When those Walnuts begun to fall they would do so all hours of the day with many falling atop our tin roof. I LOVED TO gather them one by one and see how far I could throw them. I was a skinny lil dude but I surprised my teacher in a field day softball throw of out distancing every student with my ability to toss a ball a very far distance.
Back to the discarded tires. While Bob and I could run full speed guiding those tires by hand we also spent hours of riding them down the hill into a lil creek below. NOT KIDDING, I would put Bob inside the tire cramped up within and begin pushing it to the hill's decline point and let him go! I can still see that tire bouncing full speed to stop into the small shallow stream below. What fun! I was a lil larger and a harder fit into the tire and I had to get my older bro to get me started and push me down the hill. I LOVED IT!
That was the toy of a country boy. I never rode a bicycle until I was 14 and stuff like that others knew better than me. We moved from the house I mentioned into another on the outskirts of town where I immediately got a Arkansas Gazette paper route. I had to have a bicycle and my sweet daddy bought me one I learned quickly to ride and deliver papers EVERY DAY by 6 AM on 95 customers driveways. Rain, Sleet or Snow. Not kidding. Needless to say, I was scolded many times for sleeping in class where I made lousy grades in the 9th.
I sold papers on Saturday's at a local Barber Shop for 5 cents where the extras I bought cost me 3.5 cents. It was the same priniciple of business I still use to this day in my Hay and Ranching business of generating a profit. I had a good childhood raised with 3 brothers and 2 wonderful loving teaching Godly parents. I was blessed!
Sweet memories tonight.
It was a discarded 16 inch tire. No telling how many miles we put on that tire and another like it pushing them bare footed around and around our lil house on the hill. Yes, my daddy was so wise to bring those tires to us that negated having to mow grass near our house. IN fact, Mama would sweep the yard of twigs and leaves from the Walnut tree very near our house.
When those Walnuts begun to fall they would do so all hours of the day with many falling atop our tin roof. I LOVED TO gather them one by one and see how far I could throw them. I was a skinny lil dude but I surprised my teacher in a field day softball throw of out distancing every student with my ability to toss a ball a very far distance.
Back to the discarded tires. While Bob and I could run full speed guiding those tires by hand we also spent hours of riding them down the hill into a lil creek below. NOT KIDDING, I would put Bob inside the tire cramped up within and begin pushing it to the hill's decline point and let him go! I can still see that tire bouncing full speed to stop into the small shallow stream below. What fun! I was a lil larger and a harder fit into the tire and I had to get my older bro to get me started and push me down the hill. I LOVED IT!
That was the toy of a country boy. I never rode a bicycle until I was 14 and stuff like that others knew better than me. We moved from the house I mentioned into another on the outskirts of town where I immediately got a Arkansas Gazette paper route. I had to have a bicycle and my sweet daddy bought me one I learned quickly to ride and deliver papers EVERY DAY by 6 AM on 95 customers driveways. Rain, Sleet or Snow. Not kidding. Needless to say, I was scolded many times for sleeping in class where I made lousy grades in the 9th.
I sold papers on Saturday's at a local Barber Shop for 5 cents where the extras I bought cost me 3.5 cents. It was the same priniciple of business I still use to this day in my Hay and Ranching business of generating a profit. I had a good childhood raised with 3 brothers and 2 wonderful loving teaching Godly parents. I was blessed!
Sweet memories tonight.
Bill Chavis is a well known retired papermaker and contributing writer to Paperitalo Publications.
