These days it's rather common to hear kids say, "There's nothing to do!" It’s a frequent response of today’s youth in a world of automobiles, television, movies, and just about anything else a person might want. With all the freedom provided by the automobile we still hear a bemoaning cry, "There's nothing to do!" What did our parents and grandparents do fifty or seventy-five years ago? What did they do for entertainment?

Youngsters living in the cities had special ways of occupying their time and finding entertainment. Youngsters growing up on the farm didn't have to worry about what they did with their time. Their problem was the lack of time to do all that had to be done. Of course, I am talking about kids who were responsible for milking cows, feeding livestock, feeding chickens, gathering eggs, slopping the hogs, sewing, baking, cleaning house, washing clothes, butchering, and the list goes on and on. On top of the everyday chores, there was plowing, planting, and harvesting of crops. There was very little "slack time" for youngsters on the farm. Their cry, I assure you, was not, "There's nothing to do." It was not uncommon to have six to ten children in a farm family. Children had their own chores to do. It took all family members working together each day just to make a living. It took sweat, muscle, and determination to do even the simplest tasks. Farming with horses and mules was slow and tedious. If a farmer plowed four acres a day, they had a successful day in the field. For the housewife there were no automatic washers and dryers to wash and dry mountains of dirty clothes. Each week on the designated wash day, the women and girls (and sometimes one of the boys) usually spent the day around a huge black 30-gallon wash pot that was simmering over a hot fire. It was an all-day job by the time they boiled the clothes, scrubbed them on a washboard, rinsed them, rinsed white things in bluing, rinsed again, and then hung the clothes out to dry.

Youngsters growing up on farms during earlier time periods probably had a better "self image” than some of today’s kids that have little or no responsibilities. Kids raised on the farm were probably more confident because they learned self-reliance, responsibility, and a number of valuable skills and work habits. A large number of kids today who say, "There's nothing to do," seem to have a poor self image because they do not know HOW to do simple tasks, and they have rarely been responsible for any kind of chores. Many youngsters in this category aren't imaginative enough to entertain themselves. Many end up in trouble and in juvenile court because of their inability to responsibly entertain themselves creatively.

It's really not the kids' fault because they fall short in areas that are necessary to be successful in a modern high-tech world. They are simply victims and a product of a society totally different from society fifty-to-sixty years ago. It appears that society today doesn't "need" children to help make ends meet. Since the need is not there, parents sometimes neglect to teach their children basic skills and attitudes which were essential a few generations ago. These attitudes -- self-pride and hard work -- are the very foundation for success in today's world as well as in the future. The absence of self-pride and a vital work ethic over the years has created a socialistic nation. America’s growing welfare rolls bare out the fact that we have an enormous problem and it is growing. Welfare has killed the desire for many to "make it on their own." Granted, there are many who NEED help, and we should help them, but unless we turn the tide in the near future, we will have a society void of personal pride with no desire to be productive or self sufficient. If we are not careful, we will have a generation of children majoring in "panhandling" at our universities. And if this comes to pass, our great nation, as we know it, will crumble.

Another growing problem we have is the inability of our youth to entertain themselves. If kids are so bored in a world of affluence what will the future hold? On the old family farm, after the work had been done, the kids entertained themselves in many ways. Since there weren't any automobiles in the early 1900s, youngsters couldn't hop into cars and “drag Main Street” like they do today. Entertainment was simple and generally restricted to the community. The kids had much in common with friends in other rural communities. They performed similar chores at home, and their lifestyles were pretty much a carbon copy of their friends. Activities centered around two very important institutions, the church and the school. These institutions were the gathering places for plays, ball games, picnics, and socials. Activities within the community were well attended, because this was, more than likely, the only social life some families would have.

Youngsters would usually ride horses or walk if they went to visit a friend. More formal occasions would permit one to ride in a buggy or a "hack." During those days, families often spent the afternoon (after church) at the house of a neighbor or relative. Families would take turns hosting visitations by friends and neighbors. The adults would visit together while the children would play together. The women would gather in one room while the men would gather in another or sit outside. Of course, their topics of conversation would range from the market reports, church or school activities, the weather, cooking and canning techniques, quilting, to who was sick or who had recently died.

The kids would mostly segregate themselves according to age and sex. The older boys might get together at the barn where they could talk and visit without the younger kids around. The younger children might play hide-and-seek or follow the leader, chunk at wasp nests, play ball, or play other games of choice. The older girls would gather somewhere and talk about things girls talk about.

One game I remember hearing Grandpa tell about was "wildcat." If you had four or five players the game was more exciting. One of the boys would be designated to be the wildcat. When he was selected, the others ran and hid so the wildcat couldn't find them. The rules were simple. Don't get caught by the wildcat! If you were unfortunate enough to get caught...the wildcat could unleash any kind of bizarre aggressive behavior he so desired upon you. The wildcat could hit, bite, pinch, or scratch anyone he caught. After a person got caught, and endured the punishment from the wildcat, they in turn became the wildcat. If the wildcat was pursuing you, you would go anywhere or do anything to keep from being caught. The wildcat would usually pinch the daylights out of you when he caught you. Grandpa hated for his brother Molden to be the wildcat because he would have no mercy on you. With a wildcat like Molden after you, a boy might take some unusual chances to stay clear of him. Grandpa said he remembered more than once climbing up in a live oak tree with the wildcat close behind. The wildcat would maintain pursuit until they both were way out on a limb. And when this happened you usually just tried to hang on while the wildcat did what he was supposed to do.... pinch his prey black and blue. Molden never had mercy on his own brother or anyone else. (He must have thought he was a real wildcat).

When the kids grew tired of playing wildcat or some other game, they might take a hike up to the mountain, go hunting, or chunk rocks at wasp nests. Even years after Grandpa and Molden's "wildcat" days, I had great fun as a youngster, swatting wasps when they came to the water trough for water. When they would land on the trough, they would crawl to the water's edge and drink. They were easy prey for a boy with a stick or a rock. If you wanted to live dangerously, you could fashion a paddle out of a shingle and swat the wasp while they were in mid-air. This technique often times got very tense when you had four or five mad black-tail wasp making strafing runs at you. (I believe that's why the Army Air Force had so many top notch machine gunners during the war...these guys probably had early training at the horse trough down on the farm.) If you got stung...you lost the game. Not only did you lose the game...you got scolded for messing with the wasp in the first place....plus you had to clean all the rocks, sticks, and dead wasp out of the trough. With dozens of agitated wasps still looking for the "ace" with the paddle, the chore of cleaning up became a lesson in survival.

As for me, I had plenty to do. I was always busy and never bored. We didn't have much money with which to buy toys. The only entertainment I remember buying was a nine-cent ticket for the Saturday movies. I personally don't believe you can BUY true entertainment. A person must be creative in order to be entertained. As a kid, I had more fun with an old cardboard box than most kids do today with all their electronic gadgetry. That cardboard box could be a clubhouse, an army tank, a mineshaft, or just a plain ol' hideout. It could be anything my imagination would allow it to be. It really bothers me to hear kids say, "I'm bored, there's nothing to do!" With all their modern "stuff," how can that be? Some have everything...everything but imagination and creativity.

                 JMW/June 1980

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