I grew up in the East Winston section of Winston-Salem, N.C. Our neighborhood was close-knit, as we knew our neighbors. In fact, we knew who the neighbors were who stayed three and four streets over from where we lived. As kids, we all knew one another and spent a lot of time in each other’s homes.
Back in the day, if my mom ran out of flour for the fried chicken, she would go next door or down the street to get some more flour. As boys and girls, adults who lived in the neighborhood would discipline us if we got out of line. So, we got chastised by our neighbors and received further punishment when we came home. If I told my parents that Mrs. Hairston got on my case, they would always side with her. That was just the way it was.
During the summer, I would sit on the “block” with my buddies, swapping stories until the street lights came on. Once the street lights came on, it was time for all kids to vacate the “block” and go home. Our parents didn’t have to call us. It was just an unspoken rule.
I pretty much stayed outside whenever I could. The same was true for the other kids in the neighborhood. Besides there was nothing to do inside except watch television, and that was unappealing.
The games we played as children were inexpensive. We played marbles in the dirt and we hid from one another.
While we had fun, education was taken very seriously by all adults. I don’t ever remember a time when an adult didn’t ask me how I was doing in school. I can remember the times when some of my friends and me were given these education talks by the neighbors.
Mind you, many of these education talks were given by men and women without a college education. They just wanted us to have a better life than they did. Many of the adults in East Winston worked for R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company in labor-intensive jobs. They simply wanted us to have better opportunity, and that opportunity would come by going to college.
