Childhood Memories

As we grow older and return to the places of our childhood, we are often surprised to discover things are not as we remember. A child's memory of a place, such as a family[->0] vacation spot, will be very different from that of an adult's. Particular details like size, glamour, and level of excitement are often escalated in the eyes of a child. One place I loved as a child was Disney World, in Orlando Florida. The day after school[->1] was out, my parents would take me, my sisters, and brother in law, to Florida. I can remember the excitement I felt as we loaded in the car. The trip took about ten hours. During that time, my family and I would plan our day down to the last detail. First we would ride the roller coaster and then the rocket ride. After driving for what seemed like days, we finally arrived. I remember thinking to myself how big the park was. I felt like a small fish in the ocean. Everything looked so big and so scary. First, we headed straight to the roller coaster. As we got on the coaster car and began up the steep incline, I remember thinking I was high enough to touch the clouds. This roller coaster had to be the biggest in the world! After the roller coaster, our next stop was the rocket ride. The rocket would shift back and forth, move up and down, and pivot all around. I felt like a real astronaut. After all the moving around in the rocket, Daddy decided he would take us to the arcade so our stomachs could settle down. I remember I would always try to win the big stuffed bear at the bottle toss, but it was always too hard. Soon we would be out of quarters, and Daddy would tell us it was time to leave. I can remember my sister and I begging to stay longer, but we always had to go. As we loaded in the car to head to the condo, I can remember thinking to myself that when I grew up I would bring my children to the park and let them stay as long as they wanted. A few years ago, my sister took my niece and nephew to Disney World. And I