Two kids, two bikes, four fishing poles. This was the scene that I came across driving to work on a recent morning. I was driving through the village of Mechanicville, NY about 7:30 in the morning on a Tuesday when I saw these two boys on their bikes. It caught my eye for a couple of reasons. The first reason was that it was early in the summer. The second reason was because these kids were about 12 or 13 years old and were doing something by themselves.
I was happy to see these kids out early in the morning riding bikes. I was happy to see them with fishing poles in their hands. Sometimes I think back to “the good old days” when kids went fishing by themselves. I don’t know if seeing these kids was out of the ordinary but I like to think that they were doing something that was not orchestrated by their parents.
I like to read about kids who go out into the woods and play around in tree forts and splash in streams. There is something about seeing them out in the summer that brings me a feeling of freedom. I remember when I was 14 years old on summer vacation from school. I didn’t do much of anything but ride my bike to my friend Brian’s house and play endless games of whiffle ball in his backyard. After whiffle ball we would ride our bikes to get a soda and sit next to Sand Pond to drink them. We would sit there and talk about baseball or what we were going to do after supper.
Maybe seeing two kids riding their bikes to a fishing hole reminds me of when I was that age. It reminds me of the freedom I had then. It reminds me that those kids have another two months of summer left before any responsibilities. Two months as a 14 year old kid is endless. As an adult it can seem like a long time but Labor Day will be here before you know it.
When I see kids doing things without adults around it gives me hope. I like to see kids on a basketball court shooting hoops or walking down a sidewalk laughing in the middle of a summer afternoon. It helps me realize that things will be OK. Kids can still be kids no matter how many silly things adults do on a regular basis.
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