Describe a game that you enjoyed playing when you were a child

When I was a child, my favourite game was hide-and-seek, which we played every evening in the courtyard of our apartment block. In the summer, there were often ten or fifteen of us, ranging in age from about six to thirteen, so it was a really big game.

We played it outside, in the courtyard and the gardens and stairwells around it, as soon as the heat of the day began to fade. One child would count to fifty with their eyes closed against a wall, and the rest of us would scatter in every direction. We'd made up a few extra rules over the years, for example, that nobody could hide inside a building after dark, and that the person who was found first would be the next seeker. There was a fierce rivalry about who had discovered the best hiding place, and the older kids guarded theirs very secretly.

I enjoyed it for several reasons. First, it was full of excitement. Crouching behind a car with my heart pounding, trying not to giggle while the seeker walked past, was a thrill I haven't quite experienced since. Second, it was a social game that brought all the neighbours' children together, and many of the friends I made then are still close to me. Finally, it cost nothing and needed no equipment, just imagination and energy. Whenever I walk past a courtyard in the evening now, the sound of children shouting brings back memories of those carefree summer nights.