Childhood Games

When I recalled back in the 60’s, I was never short of games to play with my friends. I used to play marbles and rubber bands. I also never missed  the “bottle-caps”  I also remembered the small sticks that were used to hold open the wooden Chinese umbrella. We held the sticks together before letting it fall like a pack of cards. Then, we would try to retrieve every stick without moving the others. If the other sticks moved a bit, then you missed your turn. The other player would continue the game. Whoever picked the most sticks was the winner.

          Sometimes we also played  a‘fighting-cock’ game. We would draw a big circle on the floor. Then, all the children stood ready inside the ring.They would stand on one leg while the other leg was held up using the hand.The game sometimes got physical as we all tried to knock each other out of the ring.The last and remaining one was the winner.

          Perhaps the most exciting and memorable one was the “Airport Games”.  It is actually a hopscotch.. We would draw the squares  on the ground  before we started to hop between squares on one leg.  Whoever occupied all the squares would be declared the winner. We all tried to outdo and outsmart each other  in the game.

          We also seldom missed the hide-and-seek game. It was the simplest of all games.  You did not need anything to play. The one who was to seek had to count from 1 to 20 with his eyes closed and using his hand to cover the eyes and to lean against the wall or tree.  The others tried to hide. It was a game filled with fun and laughter. It was during such a game that I found a leg dangling from a tree’s branch. I pulled the leg and my friend fell down. It was fortunate that he did not get hurt as the tree was not tall and the soft muddy ground also helped to lessen the impact of his fall. He got very angry and tried to pick on me. I had already prepared  for that as I had run home by then.