When Did Your Childhood End?

The Sevenshot Kid · 08-08-2011, 12:42 AM

We all had that moment in our lives when our childhood officially ended. Whether it was the death of a loved one, a loss of faith, or plain old disillusionment we've all experienced it. I was reminiscing about the comics I used to read when I was younger and I remembered my moment.

For me that moment was December 28, 2007 when I read The Amazing Spider-Man #545. That was the final issue of One More Day. At 12 years old that one issue managed to devastate me. I've always been a geeky kid so it's only natural that I looked up to Peter Parker. I grew up on several of the animated series, some of the comics, and the movies. Whereas Superman laid the foundation for me on how to be a good person, Peter Parker taught me how to be a great person in the face of adversity. And there was Mary Jane. The one person that understood Pete and was always there for him.

I loved the marriage. The fact that MJ was the one person who would truly stand by Peter through thick and thin was something that really resonated with me. Even though I hated the erasure of the marriage, I hated how and why it happened. Peter made a mistake and he refused to own up to it. He copped out. I was ruined (until I got back to Ultimate Spider-Man, that is).

What's yours?

Kyanbu The Legend · 08-08-2011, 12:48 AM

Mines ended in 2001 following the death of the pokemon craze.

That was a pretty big blow to my heart... even though Pokemon has established itself as a strong franchise whose card game is still in the top 5 world TCG/CCG/OCG rankings. And the games still sell milllions in record time.

Though thinking about it now, my childhood never really ended so much as matured a lot. Heck I was freakishly well behaved and mature for a kid in my day. >_>;

rpgdemon · 08-08-2011, 01:06 AM

What, it was supposed to end?

Edit: Like, I seriously don't understand people when they're all, "I WANNA GET BACK TO CHILDHOOD", or all, "Well, here's the point where you're totally an adult now and not a child". Just straight up don't understand it.

Doc ock rokc · 08-08-2011, 01:10 AM

In some ways my childhood ended quite early.
in others My childhood is still there.
If you mean when the shattering of magic and innocence happened, it would be when I was 4. On the day my father threw my mother down the stairs and she left, and started a divorce that divided the family for years. It took me years to understand what was going on.

RickZarber · 08-08-2011, 01:25 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by The Sevenshot Kid

2007 [...] 12 years old

God dammit, stop being more than a decade younger than me! Knock that shit off!

The Sevenshot Kid · 08-08-2011, 01:29 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Doc ock rokc

In some ways my childhood ended quite early.
in others My childhood is still there.
If you mean when the shattering of magic and innocence happened, it would be when I was 4. On the day my father threw my mother down the stairs and she left, and started a divorce that divided the family for years. It took me years to understand what was going on.

Well now I feel like a dick for losing my childhood over Spider-Man. That's fucked up that happened to you so young.

TDK · 08-08-2011, 01:35 AM

Your childhood only ends if you let it.

Token · 08-08-2011, 01:37 AM

Raped when I was six because my friend's big brother thought I had a crush on him. Thought he could "fuck the faggot out of me." I didn't even understand what gay was, until the next year, and never really came to terms with my own sexuality until I was seventeen.

But I guess my childhood died in June of 2009 when my Pokemon Yellow cartridge stopped saving.

RickZarber · 08-08-2011, 01:38 AM

Also, serious answer:

I was raised Christian, and stayed fairly religious until Junior year of high school or so.

I was laying awake late at night in a trailer in the middle of a field of some family farm in Pennsylvania in, like, 2002 or something, and suddenly seemed to wrap my head around the whole "someday I am going to die" thing for the first time. Like, total lizard-brain, full body paralyzing fear attack freakout, that kinda reaction.

Couldn't ever manage to truly "believe" after that. I consider that the true loss of my childhood innocence. Or at least the one moment I can trace things back to.

BitVyper · 08-08-2011, 01:42 AM

Nothing ends, Adrian. Nothing ever ends.

08-08-2011, 12:48 AM	#2
Kyanbu The Legend Local Rookie Indie Dev Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: New Jersey Posts: 5,497	Mines ended in 2001 following the death of the pokemon craze. That was a pretty big blow to my heart... even though Pokemon has established itself as a strong franchise whose card game is still in the top 5 world TCG/CCG/OCG rankings. And the games still sell milllions in record time. Though thinking about it now, my childhood never really ended so much as matured a lot. Heck I was freakishly well behaved and mature for a kid in my day. >_>; __________________

08-08-2011, 01:06 AM	#3
rpgdemon Not a Taco Join Date: May 2005 Posts: 3,313	What, it was supposed to end? Edit: Like, I seriously don't understand people when they're all, "I WANNA GET BACK TO CHILDHOOD", or all, "Well, here's the point where you're totally an adult now and not a child". Just straight up don't understand it. __________________ I did a lot of posting on here as a teenager, and I was pretty awful. Even after I learned, grew up, and came to be on the right side of a lot of important issues, I was still angry, abrasive, and generally increased the amount of hate in the world, in pretty unacceptable ways. On the off chance that someone is taking a trip down memory lane looking through those old threads, I wanted to devote my signature to say directly to you, I'm sorry. Thank you for letting me be better, NPF.

08-08-2011, 01:10 AM	#4
Doc ock rokc ...Really? Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: in Theory. Everything works here Posts: 3,961	In some ways my childhood ended quite early. in others My childhood is still there. If you mean when the shattering of magic and innocence happened, it would be when I was 4. On the day my father threw my mother down the stairs and she left, and started a divorce that divided the family for years. It took me years to understand what was going on. __________________ I have a Pesterchum its DangerousDoc I am ether fading out of Time, Space, or Reality...Or Simply my Typewriter is running out of ink

08-08-2011, 01:35 AM	#7
TDK Sent to the cornfield Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: Reality Posts: 2,914	You whiner. Your childhood only ends if you let it.

08-08-2011, 01:38 AM	#9
RickZarber Please Be Well Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Virginia Posts: 2,715	Also, serious answer: I was raised Christian, and stayed fairly religious until Junior year of high school or so. I was laying awake late at night in a trailer in the middle of a field of some family farm in Pennsylvania in, like, 2002 or something, and suddenly seemed to wrap my head around the whole "someday I am going to die" thing for the first time. Like, total lizard-brain, full body paralyzing fear attack freakout, that kinda reaction. Couldn't ever manage to truly "believe" after that. I consider that the true loss of my childhood innocence. Or at least the one moment I can trace things back to. __________________ Twitter / Art Tumblr / Personal Tumblr

08-08-2011, 01:37 AM	#8
Token Magikoopa Join Date: Dec 2008 Posts: 1,789	Raped when I was six because my friend's big brother thought I had a crush on him. Thought he could "fuck the faggot out of me." I didn't even understand what gay was, until the next year, and never really came to terms with my own sexuality until I was seventeen. But I guess my childhood died in June of 2009 when my Pokemon Yellow cartridge stopped saving.

08-08-2011, 01:42 AM	#10
BitVyper History's Strongest Dilettante Join Date: Mar 2004 Location: Arcadia Posts: 6,662	Nothing ends, Adrian. Nothing ever ends. __________________ "There are worlds out there where the sky is burning, and the sea is asleep, and the rivers dream. People made of smoke and cities made of song. Somewhere there's danger, somewhere there's injustice, somewhere else the tea's getting cold. Come on, Ace; we've got work to do!" Awesome art be here.