It was in the late fifties. I didn't go to school then. We lived twenty kilometers from the regional center, from the city of Kirov. My father studied in Kirov and came home only on Sundays. My mom worked shifts at the hospital. When she was "at night", we were visited by a neighbor, an old lady Misikhina. And when mom worked "a day," she left us alone. We had to stay at home and not go out. For every day I stayed for the eldest, my mother put some money in the piggy Bank. Then the money I was bought a doll. The eyes of dolls were closed, blonde hair was in plaits. And if you pull the rope, the doll said: "Mom!"I learned to read quite early, and my mother brought me books from the library. I read aloud to my two-year-old brother and my neighbor in the communal flat, Lenka, who was four years older than me, but remained and remained for the second year, first in the first and then in the second grade. We sculpted fairy-tale characters from clay and played the whole performances. And sometimes they started to "tell", that is, to write different stories. I think that" told " mainly I as the brother at that time was two-three years. For some reason I remember my dreams of animated dolls and their fairy-tale house. We had our own lunch. The food was on the stove (there were stoves in the house) and it was still warm for dinner. I remember the appetite after my brother and I had the measles. The soup seemed so delicious!
However, I was not always so obedient - when spring came, the sun was shining, and streams flowed down the street, nothing could keep me at home. I would get dressed, lock my brother and go for a walk in the yard. I remember, our wooden two-storey house was repaired, and a lot of logs and boards were lying in the yard. My girlfriend and I put the Board on a log, stood on both ends of the Board, and jumped. We were thrown up, and it was a great joy.
My mother told me that she had a device at work, which if you look, you can see where I am - at home or on the street. I believed it because my mother always knew I was going out. And scolded me in the evening. Apparently, she was asking the neighbors if they saw me in the yard.
When we went to the city, it was a holiday for me. From our station in Kirov went a small train, which people called "Malaika". Then there were only locomotives, they menacingly buzzed their horns, they were steam. And in the window of the car flying soot. In the city I loved buses, flower beds, high multi-storey buildings, paved roads and sidewalks. And, of course, big shops. In stores remember mannequins, wrapped in an excellent dark blue velvet.
In the winter in Kirov on the main square the elegant Christmas tree and big snow sculptures-hills were put. I remember the beautiful Mistress of the copper mountain, from under the hands of which the children rolled. And there were red-cheeked Santa Claus, his sack was rolling on the ice with the kids. One day my brother (I was six) was on Christmas holiday in the regional House of pioneers. There, right in the foyer, you could ride with a smooth wooden slide. Older girls and boys in fancy dress led with us, kids, dances. And then we were shown a play about Koshchei the Immortal. The eyes of the wizard burned a green fire, and even small children were crying from fear. And, of course, the joy of those children's years - Christmas gifts. Pink and white pastille, orange, Apple, pink sweet drying, chocolates...
Now mother remembers that we lived in that time poorly, after all she worked one, and the father had only a grant. But my brother and I didn't feel it. We were dressed as well as the other children. My mother made me beautiful summer dresses. We ate well. I even remember that I did not like butter, frozen sour cream (it was lumps), grapes (it had bones), watermelons (they had seeds).
Lots of joy was received from new books, from skiing and ice skating-snegurka in the winter and Cycling in summer. Skating father put me at the age of five. I still remember how I was stunned by the skating rink-shiny ice, bright lights, loud cheerful music, a lot of people sliding on skates on the ice. I got a lot of joy from the summer games in the yard - in the "twelve sticks", hide and seek, in the catch-up, in the classics. From communicating with friends and girlfriends. And everything that was around...