Childhood Recollections

I remember as a child that there was a tiny store next to the parochial school that my brothers, sister and I attended. It was about three long, crooked blocks from my home. After school, some of us would stop into the store and buy barrel sour pickles and snacks. Most of us favored Lupini or Lima beans, which the merchant had stored in a giant jar. For a few pennies, we would come out of the store with a cone shaped cup containing the beans sprinkled with salt. Sometimes, the owner ran out of the cups and placed them in brown paper. As I walked home, I would peel the skin off the beans before eating them. They were gone before I reached home. I would then drop the wrapper into the trash before entering the house.


I recall other times when we kids would climb the mountains of snow at the curb and walk on top of them, occasionally stopping and investigating someone's newly built snowman or eskimo house. We would drop off the snow mountains only to cross the street to the next block. When we reached our block, we became angels, and would innocently walk on the sidewalk.


I remember walking home and it would start snowing. The flakes were big and beautiful, and I would stick my tongue out to catch them.


These are pleasant recollections of my childhood.