The biggest privilege that my house's location gave me was the outdoors. I live in a neighborhood with very large lots, and lots of trees, animals, my parents are very active gardeners and encouraged us to play outside. We lived in a very safe place where I could rollerblade, bike, run, and ski outside and my parents didn't have to worry that anything would happen. My childhood included a lot of interactions with nature and the outdoors that some kids just don't have access to, and that is probably a big part of what made me an environmentalist and care about conservation and preservation.
My childhood also involved many interactions with nature. I lived really close to a lake in a wealthy neighborhood, so I was given the independence to go on evening runs and day long bike rides when I was still in grade school. I would run out to one of local groceries and pick up fresh tomatoes when we would make Sunday brunch. I got the opportunity to have many healthy interaction outdoors without fear.
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Mabelle
12/8/2014 12:00:47 pm
My parents gave me the opportunity to live in a town near a large city while also staying near the forests. I had the chance to explore outdoors and beautiful California Redwood trees without any trouble, and I was also lucky enough to be near the ocean. The air is so much cleaner than most other places, which is something I only realized after leaving home for a while. I'm so lucky to have chance to live in such a beautiful, safe, comfortable place.
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Nadine
12/8/2014 01:12:27 pm
Growing up with divorced parents gave me a home in a suburban area closer to the city and a home much farther out in a woodsy area. I relate to this a lot in two ways. Growing up with one home in a more secluded area definitely created my passion to help the environment. I learned the fragility and wonder that came from being sent out of the house to spend summers with just my sister and the woods. The other aspect is the safety in the area. The only time I did not feel safe was when my imagination came out to play at night time when I couldn't see the path in front of me. Eeks tree monsters!
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Shirley Johnson
12/8/2014 03:30:31 pm
My childhood home, like the rest of yours, afforded me many opportunities to engage with nature and frolic in the outdoors with my friends. Though I lived in a big city, biking paths, hiking trails and a lake were never more than ten minutes away and safe to visit at all times of day. I will always look back fondly to the summer afternoons spent skipping rocks at the lake and the fall evenings playing basketball with friends until it was too dark to see the hoop.
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Author: The Storytellers
Here you will find a compilation of stories about house privilege and house marginalization told by everyone. The people sharing these stories are your friends, your family, your neighbors and your acquaintances. The next could be you.