Suppose you just found out
that your life had a rewind button...
that you could go back in time
with the press of a dial.
Where would you go?
If my life had rewind, I would go back to the time:
1. that my jean size was less than my shoe size
and I laid outside in a bikini all day,
sipping lemonade and writing poetry.
2. that I played Mrs. Goobeygob with my
brothers and sisters until the mosquitoes got us
or Mom called us in for the night.
3. that Barbies were the coolest, prettiest dolls
in the entire universe, even if they stayed naked
in a cardboard box most of the time.
4. that we all rode to St. Louis with Mom and Dad
and fought over who was going to sit on the "hump"
of my Dad's red and white Pontiac.
5. I didn't have wrinkles, stretchmarks, toe fungus,
hot flashes, gray hair or jowls.
6. that my mom rocked me to sleep.
7. that wishing on a star for Sparkle Paints was all
I wanted in the world.
8. that love was baked into chocolate cakes,
families shared meals, and prayers were heard in school.
9. that my dad donned his tan beret and scurried to eat
at the smorgasbord- salivating over the
ham and beans and stewed tomatoes.
10. that getting a dollar bill from my Aunt Jane
in a birthday card was exciting.
11. that my baby children would look up at me
while nursing- their milky faces smiling in perfect joy.
12. when anorexia and exposed cleavage were
not the ideals of teenage girls.
13. when TV was funny, entertaining, and free.
14. when you knew your neighbors
and weren't afraid of strangers.
15. that I first met my husband- the electricity and
chemistry all colliding into a big bomb of love.
16. that my sister Barb was alive and we were
laughing over a yard sale find or chatting on the phone.
17. that I didn't care what kind of car I drove, jeans I wore,
or house I lived in.
18. that there was only a handful of breakfast cereal,
toothbrushes and light bulbs to choose from.
19. that my kids thought I was beautiful and wise.
20. that I knew what I wanted to be when I grew up
and wasn't afraid of change.
21. that a ten cent Snow cone on a hot summer day
was the ultimate in selfish luxury and complete contentment.
22. that my mom and I loaded up in the old 64 Chevy pickup
and went to town every Friday for groceries.
23. when people didn't need pills to make them skinny,
help them sleep, or alleviate their "feelings".
24. when teachers, adults, government officials
and the elderly were respected.
25. when I knew innocence, the beauty of nature,
the love of family, and the certainty that everything
was going to be okay.
Now... about pushing that Fast Forward button...
Let's not.
