​​

Back in the day, parents hit you because that's what parents did when you angered them. It may have been just a smack on the head, or literally being put over dad's knee for a spanking. Sometimes it was getting chased around the house and hit with a belt. Parents raised with that kind of discipline tended to continue the pattern. In many homes a common threat was: "Just wait until your father gets home." It took a while for people to recognize that physical punishment was abuse. It landed many traumatized kids in therapy, years later.

It seemed like mothers couldn't wait to kick their kids out of the house in the morning so they could socialize with friends. They called you in when dinner was ready and let you back out, telling you to come inside when the street lights come on.

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

 

 

 

 

 

In school, you were generally exposed to several discipline techniques. The classic was pulling you out of the room by your ear, taken out in the hall and SPANKED with a large PATTLE if you spoke out loud, rough-housed, or did not have your homework. Another favorite was smacking you on the knuckles with a ruler. 

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

 

 

 

 

 

One of the first rites of passage was the day your father taught you to ride a bike. Parents expected you to fall and made you "get back on and stop whining" about scraped knees and elbows which mother's treated with Mercurochrome. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This dark pink, over the counter antiseptic went on every boo-boo. It stung, it smelled, and it stained. It was in every medicine cabinet until FDA figured out that drugs containing mercury can be harmful and if you used enough, could affect the brain, kidneys, and babies in utero. 

Speaking of babies, we wore cloth diapers that filled with urine and poop. If we were lucky & mom found time away from her friend ("mom, who was that? oh, just a friend." lol) it got changed once or twice a day. Usually right before dad got home from work. 

​

Most parents were also VERY racist and disliked anyone that didn't agree with THEIR lifestyle. They'd tell jokes and made fun of those from different heritages. Men wouldn't let their wives work or even have their own opinions about things.