Childhood Without a Screen

What TV shows did you watch as a kid?

When people reminisce about their childhoods, TV shows often take center stage. They’ll talk about Saturday morning cartoons and after-school sitcoms, but for me, that experience was different. My childhood was shaped by a very different kind of screen—the one created in my own imagination.

I didn’t watch any TV shows growing up. Not because I didn’t want to, but because television simply hadn’t reached our country yet. We had radios, and they were more than just devices—they were gateways to the world, bringing stories and music to life. My family and I would gather around, listening to dramas that our minds filled with vivid scenes and characters.

But the real show was outside.

With no television to keep us indoors, my childhood was spent almost entirely in nature. My days were a series of adventures in paddy fields, coconut groves, and rubber plantations. My playground was the great outdoors, and my friends were the rivers and ponds where we’d spend hours catching fish and crabs, and bathing in the cool water.

We didn’t need video games; we played hide-and-seek in open fields and spent hours running after birds and squirrels. My childhood was a world of simplicity, creativity, and connection—not just to each other, but to the land itself.

Looking back, I don’t feel like I missed out on a thing. While I can’t quote lines from classic cartoons, I carry with me something just as meaningful: the memory of voices over the radio and the feeling of the earth beneath my feet. My childhood was shaped by a world of imagination and genuine connection, a true gift that I’ll always cherish.