I wanted my sons to grow up under his influence. Having his park across the street made their childhoods happy and full of fun. How closely they watched the clock every day until opening time, was it 12 or 1, I'm sure Benji could tell us. The games, the tournaments, the playmates, something to look forward to every day, something exciting to report every night when Mom came home from work, how lucky they were!
And their most serious injuries occurred there - Ricky ran smack into the maypole and knocked a front tooth loose; he and some more boys were doing chin-ups on the side of Cecil's garage, and he came down against a wire and cut a huge gash in his chest; then Benji rode his bicycle across some live coals and burned the soles of both feet. Benji, before he was old enough to be involved in the tournaments, spent hours in the sandbox, digging, making roads, building castles, he never tired of it. We never had to wonder where to find them, we left them there for hours unattended by parent or grandparent, confident they were safe, occupied, and learning important life lessons.
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