Kids Don’t Have All the Fun

The other day Norm and I were talking about our memories of family vacations.   When I was young we usually visited my mom’s relatives in Missouri during the summer.   My grandparents had a farm right outside of Springfield.   One summer when I was about nine years old we had a huge family reunion and all the aunts and uncles and my cousins were there.   We spent more time in Branson then we did in Springfield, so I should refer to them as Branson vacations.   Branson was a little place back then with only a few attractions with Silver Dollar City being the main one.

That summer, back in 1974, was the first time I visited Silver Dollar City.   We all went — my parents, my brother, and three sets of aunts and uncles with all of their children.   After we got to the park we split up — the kids went one direction and the adults another.   Back then I used a manual wheelchair and my parents decided I would be safer with them rather than spending the day with my cousins.   I was very disappointed with the decision, but I soon realized that it was going to be a lot of fun.   My mom’s sisters and brother and their spouses were fun people and I couldn’t believe how silly adults could be.   I discovered that day that kids don’t have all the fun.   Some adults really know how to have a good time, especially in an amusement park.   And what’s even better is that there was no alcohol involved.   Who knew grown-ups could have so much fun?   I think it was at that time when I decided I couldn’t wait to grow up.   Unfortunately now I wish I was still a kid.