We did everything together – rode bikes, played school and house, and all sorts of games with a ball (catch, dodgeball, and kickball). My best times were spent playing with my cousins and neighborhood friends. What about you? What did you enjoy as a child? Did you enjoy dancing, birthday parties, holiday celebrations, building snowmen, or spending a day at the beach? I didn’t enjoy those chitlins, but there were many things I did enjoy. I still remember the awful taste as I declared, “It tastes like what it smells like, and you know what it smells like.” I wonder if there might be a story hiding in this memory? The first time I tried chitterlings (pronounced chitlins by most), considered a delicacy by some, my grandmother and aunts eagerly watched for my reaction. When was the first time you rode a bike? What about the time you learned how to read, played with a new friend, traveled to a new place, or tried a new food? This is such an important milestone for children and the topic of my next book, TOGETHER WE RIDE, illustrated by Kaylani Juanita (Chronicle, April 2022), which features a girl learning how to ride a bike with the support of her father. Speaking of the first time, think of your first-time experiences. You get to engage in a plethora of experiences for the first time. As adults, we sometimes forget what it’s like to be a kid.
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