I miss, oh do I miss:
– The 5 millime biscuits we used to eat so much of.
– The Stil yogurts we used to shake, bite a hole in and drink.
– The cheap granite (lemon & strawberry) ice cream.
– The collectable cards (tsawer) and marbles (bees) we used to play with and collect.
– The small bunny-bunny firecrackers.
– The soccer matches in the middle of the neighbourhood.
– The hours of watching kaaboul, baseet, sasuki and the other cartoons.
– The trees we used to climb up.
– The times we were almost caught for doing something naughty but were able to run away.
– The way we used to sneak into strangers’ weddings to get some sweets and then leave before getting caught.
– The way we used to get out of being forced to take a nap after lunch in the summertime.
– The long summer days spent at the beach and the sandwiches we eat there peppered with sand.
– The afternoon sandwiches made with whatever we found around that was edible.
Those and so many other things I miss from my childhood in Tunisia, but most of all, I miss that beautiful and pure innocence of childhood, the freedom and irresponsibility.
Oh what beautiful days those were. I wish I could revisit them just for a day.