Although we divide ourselves into age groups based on the year of our birth, we all share a common starter pack of experiences. Not every one of the following memories resonate with everybody but all of us share most of these. The following 101 memories are sure to make you smile.
1. Nightmares that chased you all the way to mom and dad’s bed
2. An older sibling being really, really mean
3. Corn cut off the cob when your front teeth fell out
4. Super hero worship
5. High school football/basketball/baseball
6. Wondering if you could dig a hole all the way to China (Do kids in China fantasize about digging a hole to America?)
7. Swinging and pumping your legs as hard as you could to reach the sky
8. The smell of crayons
9. Finding money under your pillow from the Tooth Fairy
10. Sending notes in class
11. Staying in bed all day when you’re sick
12. Telling your parents right after Halloween what you want for Christmas
13. Comparing shoe sizes with other guys or girlfriends
14. Begging to stay up to watch more TV
15. The excited feeling of waking up on your birthday
16. Peanut butter sandwiches tasting better than anything else in the world
17. The smell of a turkey baking on Thanksgiving and the warmth of the kitchen
18. Bad haircut, maybe by your own hand
19. Competing with a sibling
20. Moments with mom or dad all to yourself
21. Cotton candy staining your mouth
22. Making out for the first time
23. Going to the local swimming pool
24. Practicing cursive letters
25. Warm pajamas fresh out of the dryer
26. Chewing gum infatuation
27. Playing in the bathtub
28. Going to a local fair or amusement park
29. Throwing up and hating it
30. Wanting a puppy or kitten and promising you’d “take care of it”
31. Your friends urging you to steal something
32. That expansive feeling of happiness and joy just being alive
33. Seeing shapes of things in the clouds
34. Wondering why grown-ups have to work all the time
35. Guys - Checking out your face real close in the mirror for sprouts of hair
36. Girls – Trying on your mother’s clothes
37. Snitching a cookie when no one’s looking
38. Counting the days to Christmas
39. Guys - hating that you can’t stop the squeaks when your voice changes
40. Girls - shopping for your first bra
41. Putting a pillow over your head when your parent’s argued
42. Not caring what your room looked like even though it mattered a lot to mom
43. Copying text from another source for an English assignment
44. The rush of kids in the hall going from one class to another
45. Forced to taste things you didn’t want in your mouth
46. The whole family watching TV and sharing a bowl of popcorn or chips
47. Packing a suitcase to visit a distant relative or for a vacation
48. Emulating your older sister, brother, best friend or cousin’s hair style and mannerisms
49. Bathing suit excitement
50. Begging mom to make your favorite food
51. Going to a restaurant or church and having to sit still
52. Loving music that your parent’s hate
53. Holding up a school paper with an “A” at the top so those behind you can see it but keeping the ones with a bad grade upside down on your desk
54. Swiping icing off a cake with your finger
55. Getting your school picture taken
56. Bringing home something you made in school
57. Report cards
58. Cussing behind a closed door after you got taken to task by a parent
59. Your grandmother’s or grandfather’s smell
60. Going grocery shopping and begging for treats
61. Putting quarters in gumball or doodad machines
62. The doodads breaking or falling apart in the car
63. Leaving your jacket at school
64. Tripping and dropping things during the awkward growing phase
65. Being r-e-a-l tempted to cheat off someone else’s paper
66. Catching someone cheating off yours
67. Jumping in a puddle
68. Praying that school will close for the day due to weather
69. The heartache of experiencing death for the first time
70. Seeing your Mom or Dad cry
71. Feeling like comforting them or making them laugh when it happened
72. Trying to walk in Mom or Dad’s shoes
73.The agony of a bee or wasp sting
74. Wanting to be a police officer, doctor or fireman when you grow up
75. Riding a bike and feeling the freedom of your first set of wheels
76. Listening to your favorite song over and over and over
77. Listening to a recording of your voice for the first time
78. Watching yourself on a video taken at a party or family get together
79. Family reunions and someone always saying how big you’ve grown
80. Blemishes ruining your life for a day, week, month and years
81. The title of your first scary movie
82. Switching clothes with a girlfriend or guy friend
83. Giving substitute teachers a hard time
84. Jumping on a bed
85. Believing Dad knew just about everything there is to know
86. Sneaking a cigarette
87. Going shopping for new shoes
88. Breaking in new shoes
89. Picking out a gown or tux for the prom, coordinating colors being crucial
90. Racing out the school door to begin Christmas and summer breaks
91. The dentist telling you to “Open wide”
92. The bubblegum smell of a liquid antibiotic
93. Scratching your skin until it bled after touching poison ivy
94. Standing in front of a mirror and practicing dance moves
95. Girls – playing with different hairstyles. Endlessly.
96. Boys – getting your haircut just like your favorite singer
97. That drape they put over you before cutting your hair and the stylist pumping up the seat
98. Figuring out what to do for your school science project
99. Sitting on Mom or Dad’s lap and pretending to drive
100. Wearing perfume or cologne for the first time
101. Trying to look older