Dave Knepper over on Google+ shared content last month about board games and it carried me back to a gentler time in my life, a time when my life lay before me with little or no worries, a time when I loved growing up, a time I sometimes wish I could freeze and return to when I needed a boost.

Hold on we are going back to that time again.  I’m talking about growing up on Graham Terrace in Lisbon, Connecticut.  It’s where my maternal grandparents lived and I spent many days months and years living there.  I won’t echo previous sentiments about the time I spent there as you can go back to the Graham Terrace link above to get a flavor for a bit of my childhood.

Okay:

Board Games which is the intent of this column today:
I commented on Dave Knepper’s content that the board game I most remember playing with my grandparents is Parcheese.

Image from:
Wikipedia

The game was kept in my grandparents den under their sofa when I didn’t stay with them.  We played every night after dinner, my grandfather and I.  On some evenings my grandmother joined in but this became my grandfather’s tradition with me.  Sometimes we’d play Chinese Checkers.  They were the two board games I recall most when I think about my grandfather.

I will cherish the time I spent with my grandparents in Lisbon all of my life.  I look back on that time and it always warms my heart.  That time always brings a smile to my face.  Graham Terrace became my refuge.  My Grandparents were the rock I clung to when I needed them.

The games we played live on in my memory and those memories are as much a part of who I am now as my faith and spirituality are.

The other game I remember fondly is The Airplane Game:
Every night after my bath, I would race back outside with my grandfather and pull up a chaise lounge alongside his and we searched the skies for the twinkling red lights as planes flew over.  Airplane!  I’d call out every time I saw one.

I loved the time I spent on Graham Terrace and it made me the person I am today.  I spent an early life blessed, knowing my best friend lived just around the corner from my grandparents.  Everything I needed was within reach when I spent time with my grandparents.

Did you have a special place spend time as a youth?  Let me know in the comments.

Be Happy!  Be Well!  Be Positive!
Blessings to you.
—
Chris

Once you realize that life is eternal,
That our souls our eternal,
That we return to light and physical over and over;

We then lose all our distress
We then lose all our fear of dying.  For there truly is no end.