真正的童年
When I was young, it was so common seeing kids running around the neighbourhood, really having a ball to be on the street. Nowadays, kids are either in various hobby classes after school or stayed at home watching YouTube or playing video games.
小時候常常見到孩子自由自在在街上走着。現在他們只會在補習班或興趣班房來又或者待在家中看YouTube或打電玩。
The playgrounds are no longer fun. We had metal slides 2-3 storey high, we had wooden swings, we could stand on and jump off from them, we had monkey bars we could fall down on hard landing. Nowadays we see plastic slides that wrap around nicely and we see rubber mat flooring that no one could ever get hurt.
遊樂場也不在好玩。從前我們有兩三層樓高的鐵造滑梯，有木板做的千秋讓我們站在上面隨時跳下來，有建在沙地上的馬騮𣕧。現在我們只會見到塑膠滑梯以及膠地板，怎樣跌也毫無損傷。
I miss the time when we could still see children helping out their parents at the businesses, doing the easiest tasks in the shop or even just chatting with the customers. Nowadays, kids are asked to stay home with grandparents or helpers if the parents have to work at the shops.
我懷念從前可以見到孩子在爸媽的店裏當小幫手，又或者和客人打交道。現在的孩子只會留在家中有長輩或工人姐姐照顧。
I grew up in a typical middle class family in Hong Kong where my dad ran a small scale factory in Tokawan. Every Saturday, my mom would take my brother and me to the neighbourhood so she could do grocery shopping; often time leaving us in the factory our father. My father would always send us to the second floor where there was literally nothing but a desk and a toilet. We were asked to do our homework or play by ourselves.
我在一個典型的中產家庭長大，爸爸的生意是在土瓜灣的一個小工廠。每逢星期六媽媽仲帶我和哥哥去那邊街市買菜，但往往把我們兩個留在爸爸的工廠來。爸爸總會叫我們到什麼也沒有的閣樓自己做功課或玩耍。
Being just a year apart from my brother, of course, he was my closest playing buddy but at the same time being the one I was always fighting with. So, most of the time, we ended up beating each other up and got separated from each other. I was always asked to sit next to my dad while my brother could remain upstairs. My best companion then became the calculator on my father’s desk where I discover I could see different figures if you keep pressing square root, the number will keep changing… yup, that’s how I was entertaining myself!
我和哥哥只差一年，當然他便是我最好的朋友但同時也是最好的打架對象。所以大部份時間我倆總會在閣樓打起上來，爸爸便會把我們分開。年紀較小的我往往是被調到爸爸身邊，而哥哥自己便可以留在閣樓。這個時候我最好的玩伴就是爸爸枱上的計算機，因為我發現當你在計算機上不斷按着「平方根」，你是可以見到數字不停地變。
To me, that’s what a real childhood is all about – having the chance to be bored or left in the shop so you could see how your parents were making a living, having the time to break your arms by falling down from the monkey bar …
這就是我心目中真正的童年 － 要懂得怎麼樣解悶，要看着爸媽怎樣賺錢，要知道從馬騮𣕧上跌下來是怎樣斷了手臂⋯⋯
Don’t just put the kids in the house or in the classroom, let them be bored and left on the street to learn what a real childhood is.
不了解孩子留在家中或班房內，讓他們面對沉悶，把他們放到街上，這便是童年。
About the momtributor 投稿媽媽檔案
Ever since she has been a mother, Lena has put aside her career and focus on her children. Although she has left her job, Lena has never given up her own dream. With the children start schooling now, she has returned but this time working for herself and helping others dreams come true.
Lena is a Canadian Hong Konger. She was previously working for a number of asset management firms and was chartered as CFA. A mother of two daughters, Lena works as a business consultant helping small business to grow.
加入媽媽行列後，Lena放下了高薪厚職專心照顧孩子。雖然只是暫別工作，但是她沒有放棄理想。現在孩子已經開始上學Lena回歸職場，但這回決定為自己拼命，為他人圓夢
Lena為加藉港人，曾任職多間資產管理公司並擁有特許金融分析師(CFA)認可資格。現育兩女兒，當商務顧問為中小企策劃業務拓展。