Good read

Got this as an e mail - don't know who the author is

CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL

WHO WERE BORN IN SRI LANKA

IN THE 1930's, 1940's, 1950's & 1960's!

(and maybe the early 1970's!).



As for the rest of you, this is for your information to read & enjoy!



First, we survived being born to mothers who did not have medical checkups

While they carried us and lived in houses made of asbestos.

They took:

Aspirin,

Ate coconut,

Raw egg products,

And

Processed meat,

Tuna from a can,

And

Didn't get tested for diabetes or cervical cancer...

Then, after that trauma of being born,

Our baby cots were covered with bright coloured lead-based paints.

We had no childproof lids on medicine bottles, doors or cabinets

And

When we rode our bikes,

We had no helmets or shoes,

Not to mention, the risks we took hitchhiking.

As children, we would ride in cars with no seat belts or air bags.

We drank water from the garden hose and NOT from a bottle.

We shared one bottle of soft drink with four or more friends and NO ONE actually died from this.



Take- away food was limited to two patties, rolls, pastries and vaddais;

No Pizza Hut, McDonalds, KFC, Dine-More or Baristas.

You could only buy Easter Eggs and Hot Cross Buns at Easter time...

Even though all the shops closed at 6.00pm and didn't open on most weekends,

Somehow, we didn't starve to death!
We could collect old drink bottles or old newpapers and cash them in at the botal kade

And

Buy toffees, chocolates, bubble gum and some crackers to have fun with.

We could eat prawn vaddais, chilli mango & pineapple & boiled cadju from street vendors

Without getting bad stomachs.

We ate sponge cakes, white bread and real butter

And

Drank soft drinks with sugar in it,

But, we weren't overweight because.......

WE WERE ALWAYS OUTSIDE PLAYING!!

We would leave home in the morning and play all day,

As long as we were back when the streetlights came on.

No one was able to reach us.

And we were O.K.

During our vacation,

Our parents never saw us the whole day,

Not even for meals as we ate at whatever house we were at during mealtimes.

No one thought of compensation or asking for money.

We would spend hours building our go-carts out of old prams

And

Then ride down the hill, only to find out we had forgotten the brakes.

We built tree houses and dens and played with matchbox cars.

We played cricket on the streets amidst the cars

&

Hide and seek using the whole neighbourhood as our playground.

Our houses were always open

&

The car keys were in the car.

We did not have Television, Play stations, Nintendo Wii, X-boxes,

No video games at all,

No 999 channels on SKY,

No video/DVD films,

No mobile phones,

No personal computers,

No Internet

Or

Internet chat rooms..........

WE HAD FRIENDS

And

We went outside and found them!
We fell out of trees, got cut, broke bones and teeth and there were no lawsuits from these accidents...
Only girls had pierced ears!
We ate worms with our fresh fruits,

And

The worms did not live in us forever.
We were given air guns and catapults for our 10th birthdays,

We rode bikes or walked to a friend's house

And

Knocked on the door or rang the bell,

Or

Just yelled for them!

No one took appointments for seeing friends.

Our mothers didn't have to go to work to help our fathers make ends meet...
Rugby and Cricket had tryouts and not everyone made the team.

Those who didn't had to learn to deal with disappointment.

Imagine that!

Getting into the team was based on MERIT.

Our teachers used to hit us with canes

And

Bullies always ruled the playground at school.

Schools were often unisex,

But, this did not affect us either psychologically or physically

Because we always managed to find girl/boy friends

&

Go 'steady' with.

The idea of a parent bailing us out if we broke the law was unheard of.

They actually sided with the law

&

We were punished a second time when we got home!

Our parents didn't invent stupid names for their kids.

We had:

Freedom,

Failure,

Success

And

Responsibility,

And

We learned

HOW TO DEAL WITH IT ALL!

And are YOU one of them!

If you are

CONGRATULATIONS!

You might want to share this with others who have had the luck to grow up as kids,

Before the lawyers,

Government

&

Society regulated our lives for "our own good".

And

While you are at it,

Forward it to the youngsters

So, they will know how brave their parents were!