“It’s only child’s play” is an expression that we’ve all used. This scene is only child’s play, or is it?
The small playground, on Virginia Avenue in North Charleston. is nestled within the trees. just barely off the road. This playground isn’t large. new. nor does it have the most modem equipment. It isn’t anything fancy. only the bare necessities guaranteed to please the young at heart.
However. towering over the grounds like a giant gatekeeper on permanent guard duty. is the shell of a Polaris missile! This fixture creates quite a paradox at the playground as one expects to see only the swings. monkey-bars. and the park benches in this tranquil setting. One wonders if the children that play near it are even aware of the vigilant watch over them.
Many of us can recall as children the frequent testing of the Emergency Broadcasting System and being huddled together in school halls during attack drills.
We remember hearing our friends and neighbors talk of constructing backyard shelters. Terms such as. A-bomb. fallout, geiger counters, civil defense shelters and rations were common to us. Most of these terms have long since been erased from our memory. Today. however. we mustn’t be fooled into a false sense of security.
Perhaps, this towering armament from the past still serves a very useful purpose by reinoculating us with a shot of reality to the great importance of keeping our defenses strong and never letting our guard down-the future of our children may ultimately depend upon it!
