The best of times

On a stone parapet that forms part of the main rail line into Guelph, Ontario, there’s a tablet that reads,  “This tablet marks the spot where John Galt, General Agent of the Canada Company, cut the first tree in the founding of the City of Guelph, April 23rd 1827.” 
As a boy growing up in Guelph in the 1950s, for some reason I memorized the words. When I realized that today was April 23, my youth came rushing back to me like water flowing over the dam in the river below.
In those days the population of Guelph was about 25,000, but it seemed like a bustling place to me. I lived across the street from St. George’s Park so there was always company for hockey or baseball. And a shack with a stove for changing that one year burned down.
Once, the biggest dog I ever saw came running toward me on the school playground. He put his front paws on my shoulders and stuck his face close to mine. He was being friendly, but I was scared, and haven’t liked dogs since.
As a Junior Leader at the YMCA I offered aid to young gymnasts every Saturday morning and enjoyed fish and chips with Joe Ruddy every Friday night. There were teachers, too, including Miss Dool who would pull your ear until you got it right. And Mr. Harris, who taught Grade Eight and spent the last day of school describing the exciting turns our lives could take.
There were services at St. Andrew’s Presbyterian Church every Sunday with the fire-and-brimstone Reverend Marshall holding forth about the sins of the world and how we couldn’t ever escape.
And, boy, did we think were snappily dressed. There was no money for fancy garb in public school, so we set a new fashion trend by turning our pant cuffs up twice and not tucking in our shirts. 
And the dangerous bridge across the mighty Speed River. We always took the underneath route where “the lemon squeezer” made passage almost impossible.
And piano lessons from Ralph Kidd who whacked your fingers with a ruler when you strayed from the tune. Parents somehow put up with it all and taught other lessons about life and how to live it
These days, the population of Guelph is about 160,000. I’d like to think the kids growing up there today are having as much fun as we did, but somehow I can’t imagine they are.