Home Base
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Home Base
John Paul Derryberry
It was just a hunk of metal protecting the transformer which transmits electricity to our homes. Yet, growing up on Leffingwell Drive in Orwell, Ohio, it was way more than a hunk of metal. It was a meet-up spot for the neighborhood kids and, most importantly, home base during our epic hide and go seek games. The one sitting in my current yard caught my eye this week, mostly because we are all home a heck of a lot more than usual due to COVID-19. As I stared at what I hope becomes home base for my kids someday, a flood of memories roared back.
My green metal oasis sat between Eric and Jamie's house. I could not tell you whose property it was on. And honestly, what kid between 5th grade and 8th grade would care? We were innocent and there were a lot of us: Eric, Jamie, Dan, Jon, Lisa, another John (only sometimes), Erin and every once in a while the kids from the street over joined. In our younger years, as we snuck around everyone's yard, the goal and the excitement was reaching that green box without being tagged. No one wanted to be IT, especially me. I'm slow.
The sweet relief of making it back to the home base was an all-time high. The best rush was when your hiding spot was so right you could slowly waltz to home base because the person IT was looking in some far-off land for you. It's where, what my wife likes to call my strut, was born. We would wave our friends to stay away or to come running because it was safe to attempt to reach the safe haven of the green box. The first lesson in what it means to trust a friend was born under street lights and dimly-lit yards.
We aged, attraction to others took hold, and hiding with the right person was way more fun than attempting to make it to home base. All of a sudden, hiding with the cutest neighborhood girl was way more anxiety-producing than running to the base with Eric, my best friend. While I did score my first kiss during a hide and seek game, it was not with the cutest neighborhood girl; she dashed those chances. (You win some, and you lose some). Another cute neighborhood girl fancied me and gave me a smack on the lips!
As the social distancing orders lengthen, we lose touch with life. We can forget the reason why we are social distancing to begin with. We do it so we will have our friends and family to play hide and seek with when this is over. Those neighborhood kids meant so much to my learning how to be a friend; learning that sometimes you don't get the girl, but you should always take risks. I also learned to be comfortable with being the slow guy and that it doesn't matter if you're the slow guy if you have the best hiding spots.
Someday, we will return to normal and that means back to hide and go seek games. It means not forgetting that, while it's always great to have a home base, we must not live in fear of others when this virus passes. As innocent kids, once everyone was back to base and safe, someone would count to 100 and we'd play again. Some played for the rush of the perfect hiding spot, others for the relief of reaching home base. Some were hoping to hide with the right partner. The point is we went back out and laughed, screamed, ran, jumped, crawled, shushed each other, and didn't want the moment when we had to go home to arrive When this is all over, we will need to use that skill again. So stay home, stay safe, but when this is over count to 100 by Mississippis, and go play again.