I hear it all the time: Folks longing for the "old days" of family, neighborhood and community in America. When people, not the government, took care of themselves and watched out for each other. When it took parents to raise a child, but everyone in the village kept a watchful eye in a supporting role. When things were simpler, safer, better.
Is that version of America dead and gone? Nope. I found it again this week in Mission Bay, Calif. - but you can find it all over the country. It's in ... family campgrounds.
Where kids are free to safely roam the neighborhood, untethered and unsupervised. And if your child falls and gets a boo-boo, you know some other parent will slap on a Band-Aid or bring them to you.
Class envy? Fahgettaboutit. You've got families camping in a Walmart tent right next to families "roughing it" in $75,000 luxury RVs. Does anyone care? Heck no. Here, have a cold beer.
Racism? Fahgettaboutit. The white kids are in the pool with the black kids who are in the pool with the brown kids who are in the pool with the yellow kids - and, guess what? They're all just kids. Fat kids, skinny kids, kids who climb on rocks. No one cares. It's just not an issue.
Oh, and get this: Kids are playing games with other kids! No, I'm not talking about Wii's and Nintendos. I'm talking about riding bikes and scooters and throwing a Frisbee or kicking a soccer ball or swinging for the fences with a wiffle ball bat.
Heck, I've even seen kids playing, get this, CHECKERS! With each other. On an actual checkerboard, not a computer screen! TVs, videos ... who needs 'em?
Oh, and get this: There is ZERO concern for children inhaling secondhand smoke. Kids are actually sitting around campfires and charcoal grills, and not a single government health nanny is trying to slap a warning label on bundles of firewood.
What, you forgot to bring a wrench to tighten up your kid's handlebars? Here, borrow mine. Dead battery? Somebody's got cables. Lights out at 10; quiet 'til 8. It's just common courtesy.
Oh, and get this: As you walk around the grounds, people actually acknowledge you and say "hello" rather than avoid eye contact at all costs. Heck, you might even start up a whole conversation with a complete stranger and become best friends ... even if only for a week.
Folks don't come onto your property unless invited. You can leave your bikes out all night. No locks on tent doors. It's America as it was. It's America as it's supposed to be. Alas, it's an America that, sadly, all too many children today will never know.
Oops. Gotta run. Time for the scavenger hunt!
• Chuck Muth is president of Citizen Outreach. He may be reached at chuck@citizenoutreach.com.