Well, it looks like this is a fun writing challenge. Ah to be a kid again... I read several interesting entries of this topic so I wanted to share mine too!
So here we go, let's see what I can remember. 🤔 The writing challenge of
@bmjc98 is to write ten things or facts about you during your childhood. Hmmm...
When I was a kid...
1. I Would Sneakily Eat the "Hidden" Vitamin C Candies.
Haha, I dunno why but maybe my mom did not want me to overdose on those yummy vitamin C candies. She hid the vitamin bottle where I could not reach it. Oh but of course I used one of the chairs to get up on the kitchen table and reach for it in the kitchen cabinet. 😂 I think they caught me a few times but hey I was still always able to eat more than I should.
Hah! The delicious vitamins had no escape from me! 😂
2. I Hated Marshmallows and Pork Fat.
Yes it may be surprising to you but I hated marshmallows the first time I tried it. I remember my siblings and I were eating Rocky Road flavored ice cream. And then suddenly I felt something soft and gooey in my mouth, eeeew. I immediately spit it out and never ate such ever again! 😂
Several years later when we moved to the province, my cousins were weirded out by my dislike of marshmallows. They would share their snacks with me but I rejected all of them. I mean come on, it tasted disgusting the first few times I tried it.
Anyway since everyone around me kept eating food with marshmallows I eventually tried to eat some again. And whoa! Hey suddenly it tasted better than I expected! 😂 From then on I could eat marshmallows anytime I wanted.
Oh let's not forget the pork fat. Omg I was also disgusted by it. That's why as a kid until a few years ago I would always remove and throw the pork fat in any viand. Or I would not get the ones with fat. Also I would pass it on to any family member/friend if I was eating with anyone. Blech, I would cringe at the taste and feel of it in my mouth. 🤮 Sorry for the food waste but I really could not eat it.
When we moved here in our current apartment, I would give all to the cats. I attempted to eat such over the years several times but never could munch and swallow any at all!
The good news is, a year or so ago I accidentally ate some and didn't notice it at all!!! Whoa. 😮 That surprised me. I only realized it after I swallowed it. Does this mean because I'm older my body suddenly needs more fat now? 😂 (Plus collagen from the pork skin too?)
I don't know why but suddenly as an adult I can finally eat pork fat without cringing. Actually it doesn't taste bad at all now no matter what dish I eat. Such an amazing change! Ah life is weird sometimes right? 😅
3. I Got Shocked and Cried a Lot The First Time I Was Spanked "For No Reason".
Well it just so happened that I got spanked without initially knowing why. My dad was the first culprit of course. I never thought I would ever experience such until he suddenly did it. My my I was shocked and didn't know why he would do such a thing. It broke my little heart that I cried and cried until they explained the reason why I got spanked. 😐
Perhaps I belong to the last generation who were hit whenever we did the wrong things. It was either the slippers or the hand that slapped my bottom several times. Ouch. 😅 At least it never got to the point of kneeling on something like my older siblings experienced.
These days I think almost all of the kids never get disciplined through such ways anymore. Yep, perhaps you can thank Bantay Bata 163 (Childrens' Watch) for that. It's a phone hotline that a foundation came up with in 1997 so people can report child abuse and such. And so now we have the so-called snowflake generation. 😂
4. I Would Remove Any Hair Accessories my Mother Would Put on Me.
Well if I stayed in private school I wouldn't have minded it. Sadly when I got transferred to public school, it stopped.
My mother seemed to enjoy putting accessories on my hair before I went to class during my 2nd grade. Maybe it made me cute then but I never asked why. 😂
So why did my mom stop doing it? Well I was getting the wrong kind of attention in class. Thus I decided to be inconspicuous in my own way. Everytime I got to school I would remove the things she put in my hair once I was inside the school gates.
Uh oh guess what happened next? Unknowingly, one time the principal saw me and eventually told my mom about it. 😫 Ah well, if only she kept her mouth shut my mom wouldn't have found out. Tsk. 🤦♀️
From then on my mother never put anything on my hair again. I never told her why I did such, even up to this day! Back then I figured she wouldn't understand. Now I don't think it matters if I tell her or not. Hehe.
5. I Went To School On My Own Since 1st or 2nd Grade.
Yep. No more school bus or van unlike in kindergarten. I would go to school by riding a jeepney and go home the same way. No need for yaya (babysitter/househelp) or sundo (someone who takes you home) at all. Wow, I was that independent when I had no idea what that meant as a kid. 😂
The school was less than 3 kilometers away anyway but still I'm sure not everyone would allow their kids to do that. 😁 I think at first I was the only one doing it. And then when I got to know my classmates sometimes we would all go together in one jeepney if we're going the same way.
In Japan kids always go out on their own all the time, especially when going to school. Saw that in a viral Facebook video sometime ago and read the comments and such about how surprised people are. Hey it happens. Some people are less paranoid than others. It all depends on how a kid is raised I guess. Hehe.
Eventually, when we were living in the province it was easier to go to school because we lived just across the street. Oh such fun. Just "one tumbling" as we call it and you're in school or back home. 😆
6. I Enjoyed Going on School Field Trips!
One of the places we went to was the Quezon Memorial Shrine in Quezon Memorial Circle! I remember it was so high and then we went to the top! There was a room up there. I don't remember a lot anymore but I remember how excited and happy I was.
Too bad I have only gone inside just once in my life. For the past decade until early last year I tried to get inside but haven't been able to. Everytime I was able to pass by the place it was either closed or under renovation. 🙃
Also, now that I think about it, I don't recall going on any student field trip as a student in the province. Whoa. But those of us who joined interschool competitions would go to different schools so maybe that counts? 😅 It was always either a quiz bee, declamation, nutrition month performance or whatever contest this or that. Huh. 🤔 Maybe that's why I have no complaints about not having any field trips. 😂
7. I Learned Another Dialect.
(No I am not gonna get into an argument about the difference of the English words 'language' and 'dialect'. You can do your own research on that. 😆)
In grade school we had to move to the province so this Tagalog kid found out about another dialect! Hwaw! It was fun to learn how different words are used in a different place. Good thing we moved back there or else I would probably find it harder to learn as an adult.
Speaking of that, I went to Iloilo province last year and boy I didn't understand a word they said. Haha. At least they were nice and conversed in Tagalog (a.k.a. Filipino) so I didn't have a hard time going around on my own. Would love to learn Ilonggo of course but since I don't have relatives there maybe it will be harder even if I move there.
And then I went to Cebu last May and it was terrible how street folks would not talk to you in Tagalog at all. 😂 First time I ever felt like I was in another country in my own country! 🙈😂 #ktnxbye
8. I Preferred Dogs Over Cats.
Yes when I was a little kid we were dog people. I remember we had like three or four at most. Whenever the female aspin gave birth we would have puppies. Awwww. And then most of them would be given away to friends or neighbors.
And then when we lived in the province I was exposed to a tabby cat. Oh boy. Haha. My cousin had one cat from I don't know where. It was just suddenly everyone's cat. Yes dogs are lovable but since that time I started to like cats more. To this day I still never had my own cat or dog though.
9. I Would Spend a Lot of Time Observing Insects and Other Small Animals.
As a kid I enjoyed looking at the crawling worms, indoor and outdoor spiders, red, brown and black ants, bugs and any other small animal I could find. Haha. I had a lot of fun and would get amazed just by observing the little creatures.
One of the cute insects I admire is the Salagubang or Abal-abal (Leucopholis irrorata Chevrolat). In English this is known as the June beetle, toy beetle or in its larval stage (and if you ask farmers) it is also called White Grub.
Most children I know play with this insect by putting a string on it then letting it fly or removing some of it's legs or just blowing on it to see how it reacts. (The 3rd one is the only thing I ever did whenever I would get ahold of one.) It's very cute to me, the photo above does not do it justice. 😍 Unfortunately it's larva form is considered a pest. 😅
10. I Learned How to Prepare the Soil and Plant Vegetables.
Oh this is something I am really glad I experienced. This would never have happened if we stayed living here in the National Capital Region of the Philippines.
I believe planting vegetables is only taught in provincial schools from grade school to high school. Too bad for city kids right? 😆 (Since the pandemic happened hopefully urban kids have been taught to value planting vegetables at home. )
My favorite plant to grow back then was Pechay (bok choy). Mmmm. I love this vegetable that's why I chose to plant and grow it. We could choose from Siling labuyo (chili pepper) or this one and other vegetables but I stuck to my choice until high school. Why not when I can bring home the leaves and enjoy the veggies (no not fruits! 😂) of my labor! 😆
This was also how I first encountered the white grub I mentioned above. Back then I didn't know what those fat and white worms were. All I know was if we didn't remove them in the soil all the plants would die. Why? Well I also experienced it firsthand. The larvae ate the roots of my pechay plants!!! 😱
Oh such a terrible thing to happen. 😅 Good thing there was still enough time to plant a new batch so I could have a better grade!
Do you want to know what the little white grubs look like? Hahaha...
Ready...
1...
2...
3!
Tadaaaa!
Oh I know some of you are shivering right now from seeing the image above. 😆 "Eeeewww!" you might have even said. It's fine at least you know how the cute beetles look like as babies. 😆
Whenever I dug up one of these, I would throw them as far as I could so they would still live. Most of my fellow students would kill these though because again they are considered pests. But hey I'm sure chickens and other birds would love these right? Ah soft, fat and white worms... 😁
Well that's it! That's the end!
Do you know I've shared some stuff I haven't personally told anyone before? Maybe you can consider yourselves lucky. 😂
(Btw, if you would like to join @bmjc98's $/BCH giveaway for her 1st yr anniversary on read cash, you can tag her and link her article and comment your contest entry link on the giveaway article. You can read her version here.)
How about you? What's your childhood story? Do we have any similar experiences? 😁
XOXO,
(Lead/header image from Pixabay)
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I really don't like worms. Eww.
But cheers for being a dog lover too. :)