Those hot, humid, dog-days of summer are here and they bring to mind so many great childhood memories.

Most of our summer days were spent at Lincoln Playground from sunrise to sunset. The city playgrounds were the place to be when we were children; everything exciting happened there. It's where we learned to choose up teams on our own; no parents needed. It's where we learned the great feeling of satisfaction that comes from working together as a team and cheering one another on.

Lincoln playground was host to many great families in our neighborhood. Just to name a few, we had the Kennys, Kiernans, Kings, Guinnups, Kinsellas, Zinks, Shillagis, Daddabos, Paganos, Bennetts, Leontis, Nolans, Doyles, Morabitos, Byrnes, Feeneys, Montgomerys, Fronczeks, Woods, Marcones, McCormicks, Palegas, Cools, Hassens, Emperatos, Davis, Sarnicolas, Skinkles, Shoreys, DelFaveros, Caspers, Renahans and Cinottis and so many more - I wish I could think of them all.

Sometimes our baseball games would start in the morning, break up just long enough to go home and get a sandwich, and then continue until dark. I can remember sprinting as fast as I could down Peacock Street to get some lunch, then back to Lincoln so I wouldn't miss a thing.

Often it was understood who would play which positions on the field, as we came to know each others' strengths and weaknesses. Nothing was better than showing up with your ball and glove and knowing you would be on a team and play in the hot sun all day.

It would get really exciting when we would play baseball against the other playgrounds. The Y-Field and Herman were always big rivals for us, and when those kids showed up to play, we thought we were in the major leagues.

There was also the mysterious clubhouse, the place where the directors kept all the sports equipment and art supplies; it was always a thrill to get a peek into this special room.

There was a bulletin board that hung on a tree by the picnic table. It announced all of the big upcoming events. As a kid, I thought the playground director had about the coolest job in the world. And we had so many really awesome playground directors: Mark Covich, Al Graney and Terry Pagano Holmes just to name a few favorites.

Tetherball was also very popular, and lines would form to try to take out the winner. If it was one of the older boys, we didn't stand a chance.

When we'd had too much sun, we would find a shady spot and play jacks, cards or checkers or make boondoggles.

There were some annual events that involved all the city playgrounds, and we looked forward to these all summer. The track meet held at East High Stadium each year was a big deal in our summer-time, childhood world. To bring home a ribbon from any one of the many events felt as good as being a Gold Medal Olympian. And the party afterwards at Pizza Kitchens on the corner of Grant Avenue and Seward was equally a thrill.

And could anyone forget the parades when each playground created their own float? Could you ever forget the year we made the “Mountain Dew” float? I can vividly recall making paper flowers to adorn our Lincoln playground float and the sense of pride that accompanied this project. Just the fact that we got to stay out until after dark was simply magical.

I think perhaps God made summertime especially for children.

Have a great week everyone, and remember God loves you so very much.

“Ask where the good road is, the godly paths you used to walk in, in the days of long ago. Travel there, and you will find rest.”

- Jeremiah 6:16

Denise Bennett is a parishioner at Holy Family Church in Auburn. She can be reached at deniseb132@yahoo.com