Growing up in Armley

Reading the play brought it all back to me, growing up in Armley, spitting distance from the Roberts factory. The factory had closed down by the time I was born, but it was still contaminated, as a child we played there all the time, the yard had open access. There was a field close by where we used to go and pick blackberrys, I remember blowing the dust off them before we ate them. People did used to say "You shouldnt play there its dangerous" but tell a child not to do something, and they do it anyway. I remember when I was a little older, in the summer time. There were two metal silos, just inside the main gates. Me and a friend were playing in them, and he came up with a dare, who could stay in them the longest. He went first, and was not in very long, then it was my turn. I was full of determination to show how much better I was than him. I remember the intense heat, and how hard it was to breath in there, my lungs and chest wracked with pain. When I came out, it took me five or ten minutes to recover, the things we do as children. It wasnt till I got older that I realised the implications of playing there, and just living there. My mun and dad used to tell me off for smoking, I used to say whats the point, the chances are Im going to die from an Asbestos related disease. I have had many friends die from being in the factory or playing near it, its like a loaded gun with a bullit with my name on it, and its the not knowing when it will happen, but knowing it will.