Remember getting up from the couch to change the channel? With only two channels to choose from it didn’t happen all that often. And now literally hundreds of channels and so little I want to watch.

Remember leaving the warm car to pull open the garage door-hoping it didn’t fall off of its tracks? And now trying to remember which button in the car to push to open which garage door.

Remember rolling up loose coins to bring to the bank? What a great feeling it was to find a lost quarter on the ground. And now coins seem almost obsolete.

Remember leaving the Ideal Stationary Store with a full bag of candy after walking in with only a quarter? Mary Janes, Smarties, Candy Lipstick, Charleston Chews, Fire Balls, Bazooka Bubble Gum, Candy Necklaces-we didn’t seem to mind if our necks got sticky. And candy cigarettes that made it look as if you were really smoking! Whose idea was that?

Remember decorating your bicycle for the Memorial Day Parade-red, white and blue streamers woven through your wheel spokes-flags attached to the handlebars-and feeling how special it was to be part of the community and ride in a parade!

Remember the square dances in elementary school-we learned to do-si-do, promenade, allemande left, swing your partner-for a week or two in PE class which led to a big dance with a professional caller. I have never seen kids as happy than when they are dancing. What happened to square dances? Time to bring them back!

Remember learning to twirl a baton in kindergarten leading to a big performance during kindergarten graduation-all of us decked out in our beautiful white cloth caps and gowns? I still remember some of the baton moves we learned way back then. And the rhythm band we all performed in with a kindergarten conductor. Was it the triangle that everyone wanted to play?

Remember waiting all year to watch ‘The Wizard of Oz’ and ‘The Sound of Music’-usually on Thanksgiving or Christmas evenings. How special the waiting and the anticipation made the screening? How fun it was to gather around the TV with our ice cream sodas to watch together as a family. Waiting seems to make things a bit more special.

Remember going to the Paradise or Eddy’s Luncheonette after school for some French fries and a coke-or a crawler and some hot chocolate. It was so important as kids to have a place to go and gather-all of us sliding into a booth and laughing together-figuring out the check and tallying up a tip. Where do kids have to gather now?

Remember the Halloween costume party at the Cinema? I remember one year Joyce and I dressed up as salt and pepper shakers.

Remember going to visit the cows at Cilli’s farm and feeding the calves? Dominic delivering milk to our homes in glass bottles and coming right into the kitchen to replace the unused milk with new bottles in the refrigerator.

Remember the balsa wood airplanes, yo-yos, cap guns, and Super Pinkies from the Five and Ten? There was a time that everyone had a yo-yo in their pocket-and we tried to learn tricks-‘Cat’s Cradle’, ‘Around the World’. And of course there were Slinkies, Gumby and Silly Putty. Some Easters we would find one of these treats under the straw in our baskets.

Remember the youth groups and the youth center with ski trips and outings with your friends? Whatever happened to our youth groups? ‘

Remember “SPUD”, “Mother May I”, Ring-a-levio? Playing outdoors with our friends. Flying kites, building forts? Do kids still play outside?

Life has changed radically before our eyes. But then I think of my very own grandfather who was born in 1883-before the car (1886), and the airplane (1903). In 1925 half of all the homes in the US didn’t have electricity. In 1940 nearly half of homes lacked hot water, a bathtub or shower, or a toilet that flushed. I can only imagine all of the changes he experienced. Things sure have changed at a lightning pace. I guess indoor plumbing and electricity were definitely positive changes. But today I seem to drag my feet and want to hang on to the simplicity of the past-our wild, fun childhoods without attachment to cell phones, computers and video games. Perhaps memories of the past can help us to reshape the future. Maybe we can move forward by stepping backwards. Where will we end up if we keep up this pace? Perhaps in a world beyond our wildest imaginings.

What is it that you remember?

Sag Harbor-Remember When