Where I lived, there was a park in the middle of the neighborhood. All of the parents and grandparents would take their children out to the park to play, especially during the summer. As a result of this, the adults became friends, as did the kids.
I will always remember us, just playing on the play structure, and seeing our grandparents walking together around the park for exercise. I always loved going to the park.
We used to plan many events so that all our families could get together. We often would have dinner together at each other’s homes. I would stay at friends’ houses for hours playing.
Fridays were always special because of “game night.” One family would always host the festivities: it was a bunch of kids playing board games together. There were countless occasions when my parents had to come over to pick me up because it was too late for me to get home.
The parents would also plan potlucks on special occasions. For example, on Chinese New Year, each family would bring a couple dishes and we would all share. One family would bring the tablecloths to set on the park tables, another would bring the utensils, and everyone would contribute to the money that would go in the red envelopes for the children.
I have endless and overflowing memories of us playing on the play structure and just seeing our parents prepare everything.
On Easter, every family would bring a big sack of plastic eggs. Then, the parents would spread them out all over the park for us to find. The joy of finding an egg in a bush that no one found a couple weeks after Easter was incomparable.
Because of Covid-19, we would meet a lot less as families, but instead, just my friends and I would hang out. Cycling outside with my friends saved me during quarantine.
My neighborhood was enclosed so it was relatively safe. So, during the summer, we would go out cycling nearly daily without supervision.
Usually, one of my friends would come out first and knock on my door to get me. Then, together, we would bike around the neighborhood to everyone else’s houses to ask if they could come out.
If the day was really hot, we would organize water fights. We filled up hundreds of water balloons and brought them to the park. I was always in charge of bringing the water guns. At the end of the fight, we were all soaking wet on the ground, picking up the plastic remains. Looking back, my quarantine summers were not in the slightest bit boring.
Although I haven’t talked to some of them in a while, we still get together sometimes. We celebrated last Christmas together and went to a light show. And I can never say no to a bike ride if someone comes knocking at my door.
I will always remember us, just playing on the play structure, and seeing our grandparents walking together around the park for exercise. I always loved going to the park.
We used to plan many events so that all our families could get together. We often would have dinner together at each other’s homes. I would stay at friends’ houses for hours playing.
Fridays were always special because of “game night.” One family would always host the festivities: it was a bunch of kids playing board games together. There were countless occasions when my parents had to come over to pick me up because it was too late for me to get home.
The parents would also plan potlucks on special occasions. For example, on Chinese New Year, each family would bring a couple dishes and we would all share. One family would bring the tablecloths to set on the park tables, another would bring the utensils, and everyone would contribute to the money that would go in the red envelopes for the children.
I have endless and overflowing memories of us playing on the play structure and just seeing our parents prepare everything.
On Easter, every family would bring a big sack of plastic eggs. Then, the parents would spread them out all over the park for us to find. The joy of finding an egg in a bush that no one found a couple weeks after Easter was incomparable.
Because of Covid-19, we would meet a lot less as families, but instead, just my friends and I would hang out. Cycling outside with my friends saved me during quarantine.
My neighborhood was enclosed so it was relatively safe. So, during the summer, we would go out cycling nearly daily without supervision.
Usually, one of my friends would come out first and knock on my door to get me. Then, together, we would bike around the neighborhood to everyone else’s houses to ask if they could come out.
If the day was really hot, we would organize water fights. We filled up hundreds of water balloons and brought them to the park. I was always in charge of bringing the water guns. At the end of the fight, we were all soaking wet on the ground, picking up the plastic remains. Looking back, my quarantine summers were not in the slightest bit boring.
Although I haven’t talked to some of them in a while, we still get together sometimes. We celebrated last Christmas together and went to a light show. And I can never say no to a bike ride if someone comes knocking at my door.
