How the Tigers Saved Detroit in ’68
Be a Kid Again Day evokes memories of the riots, Harwell, newspaper clippings, and a riveting run-up to the World Series
A message board post informed me that July 8 was Be a Kid Again Day and asked readers to imagine being 10 years old again.
“What were you likely doing on that date when you were 10?” the message board asked.
Oh, they didn’t even make it tough on me.
I may have trouble remembering what I had for lunch, but the summer of 1968 is indelibly branded on my psyche.
It wasn’t just the fun stuff — although there was plenty of that.
Running through the sprinklers.
Listening for the sound of the ice cream truck, then begging Mom for a dime to buy a 7 Up popsicle.
Lying on the floor in front of the oscillating fan, reading books, newspapers, and the Seventeen magazines I swiped from my sister’s room.
Waiting for the neighborhood kids to finish dinner so we could play Tag, Red Light/Green Light, or Mother May I.
Crossing my fingers that the girl who lived on the corner would invite us to swim in her built-in pool.
