As the hot days of summer are here, I remember when it was hot when I was a kid. Growing up in Newtonia, we did not have a city swimming pool — we relied on a good old garden sprinkler or even the small plastic pools.
After a hard day’s work in the garden — and yes Greg and I did help Mom and Dad planting vegetables or picking the crop — my parents would tell us to get on our bathing suits and prepare to cool off. They did this by hooking up the garden sprinkler, where the water would wave back and forth. Greg and I then would take turns jumping over the sprinkler unit and getting wet. Those were the days.
One of our friends, Shelly Smith, who lived across from us, had a Slip-n-Slide, where you could hook up the garden hose and one by one, we would run and slide. On Wednesday, I actually saw one of those Slip-n-Slide commercials on TV.
Even though we did not have a pool, my parents took us to Monett, where they had the pool. Dad taught us how to swim and even gave us piggyback rides in the pool.
When Neosho got their swimming pool by the Rec-Plex in the 1980s, it was time to take swimming lessons and get certified. Occasionally, Mom would take us to Big Spring Park, where Greg and I would wade in the swimming pool, while Mom sat and watched us.
So as the weather approaches the upper 90s and the heat indexes are even worse, remember to cool off and cherish the moments running through the sprinkler or swimming in the pool or creek or lake.
Todd G. Higdon is a staff writer for the Neosho Daily News.
