My parents are in the process of selling the family home. We moved there when I was six months old, and thirty-eight years later, it is finally time to move on. It is a heartbreaking process, and when the day actually comes when the papers are signed I am sure a few tears will be shed. But in between now and then it is a lot of work, cleaning, cleaning and more cleaning.
Sometimes, though, the cleaning gets interesting, and it is more like an archeological dig through your personal history. Old report cards, letters, yearbooks, and of course, the toys. Way in the back of a tunnel closet, beneath the eaves, we found a treasure trove. A well-loved but still in the original box Millennium Falcon, various other Star Wars ships and figures, legions of army men, countless dinosaurs, and one blue plastic suitcase full of Matchbox Cars. Opening it was like opening a window to my youth.
It amazed me how so many cars brought back very specific memories. Here is the big silver Maserati that was my brother Chris' favorite. There is the one I was painting when I spilled the oil-based model paint on the wood floor. One futuristic car had the initials J.D. on the bottom, and I immediately recalled my brother Mike trading for it with a kid from his class named Jason Durney. And of course, the Monkees Mobile, which I bought from Jimmy Sheeran for five dollars in seventh grade. While it is not technically a Matchbox Car, it still holds a place of honor in the collection, for obvious reasons.
I found myself studying the collection and trying to analyze the younger me. Why the fascination with rescue vehicles? What's with the limited showing of sports cars and the preponderance of trucks? And why on earth did I have three hovercrafts? But I remember receiving many as gifts, so I may not have had a lot of say in what I ended up with. What is certain, though, is the hours of enjoyment I got from them. One look at their condition is a testament to that fact.
These cars are primarily metal, with some plastic bits, and most of them were made in England in the 1970's. They obviously have stood the test of time and are still a big hit with kids today. This fact was recently proven when a friend visited with his two boys the other day. Their astonished glee and subsequent complete absorption was joyful to see. And not to get all crusty and rose-colored, but it did make me wonder what will stand the test of time from the childhoods of today. How do you store away an app, to be dug up decades later with delight? I know kids have plenty of stuff, but do they have too much to focus hours of their energy into just a few things? And is it built well enough to last forty years?
I know, I know, too maudlin and preachy. But what I am taking from this whole experience is the ability of kids to infuse themselves into beloved material possessions, so much so that thirty years later, details and memories come flooding back with startling clarity. This speaks to the power and significance of a child's surroundings and the objects in them. After sifting through that suitcase of cars I will no doubt more carefully consider what I can give my kids that will make them warmly smile and reminisce some thirty years down the road.
(Images: Richard Popovic)
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Nice! I used to get a Matchbox car every time I was sick. I was "sick" a lot. <G>
Matchbox had it's rescue vehicles, Hot Wheels had its hot rods and sportscars. I love both but I have to admit that the Matchbox cars were more durable than the Hot Wheels.
For what it's worth, I have very fond memories of playing hours of tetris on my Game Boy in the car when I was a kid (20 years ago). I am certain that just the sight of an original Game Boy would send me on a nostalgia trip to 1990 just as quickly as the sight of your Matchbox cars brought you back to the 70s.
My brothers would agree with you on Matchbox cars..but my heart is with the "vintage" (late 1960s) Fisher Price yellow house with the people and furniture in it.
My dad was as obsessed with matchboxes (and hot wheels and corgis, etc) as I was - many of mine were bought years before I was born. While cleaning out my mom's attic a few years ago I found a huge cache of the boxes all of my matchboxes had come in (years before blister packs, they came in boxes). Literally all of them. Most of the actual cars were either lost to the yard or went with dad when he moved out. My nephew has the bulk. Those boxes brought back so many memories - so many odd race cars in the 70's, easpecially the SUPERSPEED! ones - but I'm a materialist so I ebay'd 'em. Lesson learned: collectors love matchboxes, but they seem to love the boxes the most.
I don't know much about matchbox cars but my husband and I just bought a home that has been owned by the same woman for 67 years. She bought it with her husband as a newlywed, raised her four children here, was widowed and finally moved to assisted living at 93. Every once in a while, her daughter drives by and stops if she sees me and our two baby daughters in the yard. It's wonderful to see her and I know she loves seeing the house she grew up in!
My son loved his "little metal cars," or as he called them, LMCs. They were Matchbox, Hot Wheels and everything in between. Many had been my little sister's toys, from the early 70s. Nice memories... thanks.
Now here comes the preachy part (sorry... I can't help it), so beware... It's so nice, too, believe it or not, that your parents are selling their home and sharing this nostalgic, but happy trip down memory lane with you. You may find it heartbreaking, but unfortunately, many times the family home is sold by the grown children after the parents have died. So enjoy this time with your parents and remember that "heartbreaking" is relative.
TBGBoodler, I used the word heartbreaking because the whole family is sad that the family home is being sold, from my parents to each of my three siblings. But I'm in no way judging them for doing so or resisting it--I am well aware that two aging people do not need an old three-story Victorian and I cannot wait for them to move to a simple one-floor modern place much more suited to their current reality.
I find I can be both heartbroken and pragmatic about the situation and not feel conflicted, so I would say a person's ability to process complex emotions is all relative as well.
My husband still has his collection of Hot Wheels from when he was a kid, more precisely, he still has the ones that survived his childhood. He is now sharing these with our young son and it is heartwarming to see them both enjoying them together. He too has a story or memory associated with each one. For around $1 kids can still have hours of fun and imaginative play. Thank you for sharing your memories with us.
We cleaned out the family house after 45 years and I saved a suitcase full of old Barbie dolls & clothes. Now my friend's 6 year olds come over the play and go straight for that suitcase - they especially love the fetching mid 70's glam outfits & go-go boots. It's reassuring to see that kids 40 years later still can appreciate great toys that require some imagination to get the most out of them. We also saved some incredible full metal Tonka trucks that my mom had saved because according to her "They were the only things the boys didn't destroy".
Enjoy the chance to reminisce with the family while you empty the house. My family had a good time despite the massive amount of work involved and it makes it easier to say goodbye when you do it together.
This is a lesson to parents of small kids now - don't purge toys too much!! We love having a clean, uncluttered space, but I can't see myself getting rid of our son's Matchbox cars, Lego constructions, or his shiny red metal Radio Flyer roadster/scooter. http://compare.ebay.com/like/160829300948?var=lv<yp=AllFixedPriceItemTypes&var=sbar. He got the last one on his 1st birthday and it's still going strong!
As the mother of two young boys, we had bought a few wooden toys and matchbox cars for our first son which even as a toddler he was very careful with and he still kept them in great condition from age 5. Then our youngest at age 18 months managed to dismantle/break/lose several pieces of our 8 year old's treasured toys. It was heartbreaking for him but we now know to box his favourite things far from his brother and that our youngest really is strong for his age.
My 5 year old son is a Matchbox/Hot Wheels addict. Your post had me teary just imagining him looking back through his collection 30 years from now. They are the *only* toy he plays with daily.
-Abby
You know, you can still buy Matchbox and Hot Wheels cars and they're not even expensive. Grocery stores and Target have one line of Matchbox, I think, that are only 99 cents each. I had fun buying them for my little grandson---I had fun looking for specific ones, like a pickup truck similar to the one their handyman has, or the Mazda that a favorite uncle drives. I even found a Zamboni after the grandson was mesmerized by one in action.
I know how you feel I use to have a huge collection of hotwheels and matchbook cars as a kid... I remember being able to get them on rainy days when I was well behaved. It's funny when I think of those little cars I remember playing with them and think about all the well loved handmedown cars my sisters played with to. And now as my sisters youngest now plays with them kind of makes you beam that so much history in such little toys.