Is This Bit of Fun a Thing of the Past?
January Six Word Photo Story Challenge: “Fun”
This game had me jacked up.
I pulled a small denim drawstring pouch from a box I’d had in storage. I opened it and reached in, feeling spokes of metal. My jacks!
I dumped them into my hand, feeling their tiny weight, admiring their shape. The memories came back — sitting on the floor in the basement of a friend’s house, or the hallway at school, bouncing the small red ball, sweeping the jacks into my hand and catching the ball in the same hand.
It was fun. I knew the finer points of jacks, the more complicated sweeps and pick-ups beyond onesies through tensies. As knowledgeable as I was about the game, I can’t remember these more complex formations — only that they existed.
I used to enjoy spinning the jacks, as well. They made mesmerizing little tops.
Holding my jacks, I was both nostalgic and proud. We kids were quite skilled to be able to perform the complicated maneuvers necessary to play. I wonder if kids today have any idea about jacks. I worry that children no longer play most of the games from my childhood.
I hope I’m wrong.
Thanks to Sandi Parsons for this prompt!
