My childhood...

I recently received an email from my friend. After reading it, I started wondering how we have changed the way we live. I loved this mail so much that I decided to post it here. Following is the excerpt from the mail: How did one survive growing up in the 70's, 80's and 90's? We had no seat belts, no airbags and sitting in the back of a truck was a treat. Our baby prams had the most gorgeous lead based colors. No such thing as tamper proof bottle tops. Opening kitchen cupboards was a breeze as safety locks were unheard off. Cycling was like a breath of fresh air. No safety helmets, knee pads or elbow pads, with plenty of cardboards between spokes to make it sound like a motorbike. When thirsty we only drank tap water, bottled water was still a mystery. We kept busy collecting bits & pieces so we could build all sort of things and we were fearless on our bikes even when the brakes failed going downhill. We were showing off how tough we are, by how high we could climb trees & then jumping down…. It was great fun…. We could stay out to play for hours, as long as we got back before dark, in time for dinner… We walked to school, or sometimes we even rode our bike. We had no mobile phones, but we always managed to find each other…. How? No one knows… We rushed to help neighbors when they were in trouble, now we do not even know who stays in our neighborhood! We lost teeth, broke arms & legs, we got cuts and bruises and bloody noses, nobody complained as we had so much fun, it wasn't anybody's fault, only ours. We ate everything in sight, cakes, bread, chocolate, ice-cream, sweet sugary drinks, yet, we stayed skinny by fooling around. And if one of us was lucky to find a 1 litre coca cola bottle we all had a swag from it & guess what? Nobody picked up any germs. We did not have Play Stations, MP3, Nintendo's, I-Pods, Video games, 99 Cable TV channels, DVD's, Home Cinema, Mobile phones, Home Computers, Laptops, Chat-rooms, Internet, etc ... BUT, we had REAL FRIENDS and not the virtual friends or avatars!!!! The present generation may boast of the ultimate and real feel games, but we have played the real games in real environment and not in the virtual environment. We used to do summer job and earn pocket money to buy colas and ice candies. Now kids go to "Second life" or "Sim city" and earn virtual money to buy virtual merchandise. We called on friends to come out to play, never rang the doorbell, just went around the back… We loved being let loose in the big bad world…without bodyguards… We played with sticks and stones, played with the top and "vitti-dandu", doctors and nurses, hide and seek, soccer games, "Lagori" or the seven stones, over and over again… When we failed our exams we were given a second chance by simply repeating the same grade…without visiting psychiatrists, psychologists or counselors… Such were the days… We had freedom, success, disappointments and responsibilities. We lived it all. Most of all, we learned to respect others. Now I know why it is said "Old is Gold" Jai Gurudev O.A.K.