The Kids In The Hood...

      I always got a kick out of this photo and recently SN and BD had commented on it so I felt encouraged to give a little background on the two kids (I'm the slickster in the middle).

      The girl in the photo is "Lily". She lived about three doors down from the new house Dad had built (house and lot $10,000, $112 mortgage payment but Dad only made $75 a week) in North Burnaby and was the first friend I ever had--we were three years old. Her family had this old shed in her back yard that no door on it that faced the back lane. Inside the shed was this giant cardboard box that we used to play in. It was filled with scrap papers from some business they owned and always stunk of cigarette ashes, I guess her folks dumped their butts in there as well-good call. One day "Lily" and I were playing in the shed when she decided she had to go poop. Rather than just going into her house, which was right there, she dropped her drawers and went right in front of me on the dirt floor of the shed. 

     I thought this was a little weird but as she had her pants down I became curious as to what she had in front because it was sure different than mine. She stood up so I could get a better look and all I remember thinking is that it looks like a "front bum". She asked me to take my pants down (or maybe I just offered) and as we were both standing there pants around our knees looking at each other my Mom walked by the garage door. I was horrified (although I wasn't sure why). She stopped and stared for a second as we struggled to get our pants up but surprisingly kept on going. I felt relief but also thought, "I'm gonna catch shit when I get home."  Mom never said anything when I got home that day to, my surprise and when I asked her years later why she never said anything she simply replied, "I didn't know what to say."

    "Lily" and I remained pretty good friends throughout elementary school but only around the neighbourhood, boys just didn't hang around with girls much at school. We grew apart by grade six or seven and I have no idea where she is today but I'll never forget that day in the shed and the "front bum." And hopefully she never reads this blog.