After yesterday's rain shower, the neighborhood children wonder if we're still having Monday Night Fitness Group in the parking lot. The phone rings and a little voice asks, "Mrs. Holleman, are we still having Fitness Group?"
"Yes! Unless it's really pouring rain, we'll be there!"
"Good! I can't wait!"
Later at that parking lot, 50 folks come to ride bikes, skate, throw footballs and Frisbee, and of course, jump rope. We used to be a group of 8, and now we are 50 strong.
I'm standing there from 6:30-7:30 PM, turning those ropes like I've done for four years now. I'm slapping high fives and singing "Cinderella-Dressed-In-Yellow," "Teddy Bear, Teddy Bear," "Bubble Gum," and "Last Night, the Night Before." The kindergartners and the middle school kids all wait in the same line to jump. One boy breaks the neighborhood record and jumps 130 times. A few moms and one dad try to jump double dutch. My arms nearly fall off from turning ropes.
Yes, we're still having it. We'll still have it next year and the year after that. In forty years, when I'm too old to turn the ropes, I want to see a whole new neighborhood gathered in this same spot.
Yes, we're still having it.
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I need new jump rope songs! Any suggestions from your childhood memories?
6 comments:
There are few things better than sharing warm evenings with friends! Some of my favorite childhood memories are playing tag in the yard around dusk. My dad came up with some pretty intense I will say though: I was never good at jump rope!
This brought back a lot of happy memories of jump rope at recess. Aggravatingly, I can't seem to really remember the rhymes we liked to use. I do remember that I used to check out a book of jump rope rhymes from the library. Maybe check there?
Great idea, Carla!!!
Tag in the yard at dusk! What could be better!
You are so inspiring! I love how you've gone from making phone calls from the phone book to your neighbors to now having 50 people coming out to play!! Your love and joy is contagious.
Thank you!! It's God's thing.
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