52 "My Trip Back In Time"- a visit to my past

A Trip Back In Time

Now that I have retired I have moved back to Colorado, with the help of some relatives and some very good friends. One of the things on my agenda and that I have wanted to do for a very long time, is to visit a couple of my childhood homes. This being my birth state, I want to visit a couple of places that I can remember from all those years ago.

I am starting with a little of what I remember back when I was about 3 years old. We lived in Rockyford and that’s where my memories start. I can remember a time when I was about age 3 and we would be in the front yard. I would start walking down the sidewalk toward a ditch that was 2 houses down. The family dog Fritzi, I believe she was what they call these days a Min-pin, would get me by the seat of my pants and start pulling me back because she knew I wasn’t allowed to go near the ditch.

Anyway, the point I am trying to make is that I can remember and describe the house we were living in when I was 3 and 4 years old and I remember where it was located in Rockyford, CO. I traveled there a few weeks ago. The time that I lived there was about 60 years ago, and amazingly, I had no trouble finding the house. I only had to drive down 3 blocks. There had been a couple of changes within the last 60 years but there was still enough there that was the same so I had no problem recognizing the house and the area. The porch on the house had been enclosed and the trees were a lot bigger. The house was still white, or maybe it had been some other color and was white again, and the ditch was still there.

This was the first thing I went to in search of my past memories. The next place I had on my slate to visit was Wray, CO.

First, let me brief you about a little of my childhood history about my time in Wray.

We moved to Wray when I was about 5 years old.

I remember the house being down a long dead end road that ended at our house. As you looked at the front of the house, off to the left there was a field and to the right was the house of our neighbor, the Crouse’s. There were 2 doors on our house. The one on the right led into the living room. The door on the left led into the service porch and kitchen. The service porch also led down to the basement. There was also a creek that ran in front of the house and down along the field at the left.

I had a friend that lived up the road, across the highway. There was a big storage pit up the hill behind where he lived. I believe it was at one time used for water storage and at that time the pit was empty. My friend, being the dumb kids we were, threw rocks across the pit at each other. Well, one of the rocks I threw hit him in the head. When I saw the blood running down the side of his face I thought I had killed him, even though he was still walking. I ran home just knowing the cops were going to come and get me. A few minutes later there was a knock on the door. When my mom answered the door it wasn’t the police, it was my friend’s mother. She came down to assure me that he was going to be fine. Whew, I wasn’t a murderer.

The first nightmare I can remember ever having was caused by the first monster movie I recollect ever seeing. The movie was Godzilla and we had gone to the theater downtown in Wray. That night, sleeping on the couch, which is where I slept, I can remember waking up the whole house when I started screaming.

OK, now back to the reason for this story.

I am now living in Colorado Springs and I am slowly picking the places of my past that I have on my agenda to visit. The other day I got in the car with my best buddy, Harley, and we drove the 205 miles to Wray. It was a beautiful drive.

We arrived in Wray driving past the city limit sign. I could remember that the street I was looking for was close to there. It actually turned out to be the first street to my right. The house where my friend lived, the one I thought I had killed was right there. I turned down the street just to see that the street wasn’t anywhere near as long as I remember. It sure seemed like it had shrunk from the day I was an almost murderer.

There was no more 2 story house that once belonged to the Crouse’s. There was no field on the far side of the house as I remembered and the house didn’t seem the same as I had pictured. The house was similar looking, but not the same. The creek and the forest were still there.

I guess 58 years changes things, or at least things seem different after that length of time.

Where the Crouse’s house had stood there is now a series of duplex homes. They appear to have been built fairly recent. They seem to have been completed maybe within the last couple of years. There were other houses around that seem vaguely familiar and I can remember that when it snowed we would ride sleds down the Crouse’s driveway and across the road almost to the creek.

I had another friend that lived closer to the school and I went by and found his house was still there. I drove downtown and found that the theater is still there where I saw Godzilla. The movie playing the day I was there recently was “Cowboys and Aliens”.

Just remember that if you go to revisit your past of 50 or 60 years ago, don’t be surprised if things don’t seem the same as you remember them. They might have changed or they just don’t seem as big as you remember them from when you were smaller.

It was fun to go back and find some things actually seem the same as you remember them and also to see the changes that have been made.

I would have expected our house to be torn down and replaced instead of the Crouse’s 2 story house.

These trips were fun and I am looking forward to more. I also plan on visiting some ghost towns and haunted places here in Colorado. Even though other people have written about most of the places, I plan on writing about my experiences.

Greg