Out for a Stroll

Kent and I lived in the San Fernando Valley, in Mission Hills. Mission Hills in the the northern portion of the valley.

It was another summer day and we were bored. Our parents were at work. I think I was about 10 years old and Kent was 7.

I don't know how we got the idea, but we started walking south. We walked down Haskell Avenue for a good while, then turned westt toward Balboa. Balboa runs the vertical length of the Valley.

I remember that it was very hot out, as usual in the area during the summer. VERY HOT!

Next thing you know - we had walked the entire length of the Valley, to the sourthern end and we could see the Ventura Freeway a short distance off.

We were standing next to one of the holes at the golf course in the Sepulveda Dam Basin. I remember the two of us talking and then we went out on the course. It was so hot that no one was playing at that time of day.

We found some sticks and then we found some beat-up golf balls in the bushes and proceeded out onto the course. I remember the innards of my ball hanging out through the white stuff.

We played one hole completely - hacking at the balls and making large divots in the ground. It's not real easy to play golf with sticks!

We went to tee off at the second hole and were working our way down the fairway when a man in a golf cart spotted us. He came over to us and yelled at us to get off the course and look at what damage we had done to his beautiful golf course!

We were scared...I can't imagine us knowing how to get a ride home from there...so we started back up Balboa north towards our house. How we knew directions at that age I do not know, nor can I comprehend. I wouldn't have believed this, but Kent and I agree we did it!

Somehow we got home late in the afternoon. I think that there was an afternoon babysitter or housekeeper or something. She must have been pretty sharp to not notice we were missing for most of the day.

Anyway, as hazy as the incident was...can you imagine in this day and age having two little guys walk across the San Fernando Valley and not have anyone stop or even question what they wree doing?

When our parents asked us how the day went I am sure that we told them that we had just a normal day...normal for us!