School Daze….

 

  If my memory serves me correctly, it was September 1951. It was my first day of school, kindergarten. (I am quite sure that back in the day before we could enter school, our parents had to show proof of all kinds of vaccinations.) I don't remember much about that day. In fact, I don't remember anything. It was a long time ago. I am not even sure I remember the name of the school, although I'll take a guess at Roseland Elementary School in Roseland, New Jersey.

   With that day it was the beginning of 13 years of classes in grades K-12, then college, graduate school and even more graduate school. But over the years the nature and delivery and education has changed tremendously. OK. I'll say it. Today's classroom is not your grandfather's classroom anymore, especially the past year or so.

   What I do remember of the early days was the playground, school lunches, and neatly arranges chairs and desks in five rows with seven chairs in each row, each classroom exactly the same. We all went to the boys’ room and girls’ room at the same time, even if we didn't have to go and if someone in class misbehaved, we all stayed inside at recess time.

   And then there was the little red-hair girl who I always sat behind in class. But that's a story for another day.

  In the early years if we had a question, we raised our hand and when called upon, we stood up to ask the teacher the question or were called up to the teacher's desk.

   Back in the day, there were black boards, white chalk and erasers that needed to be cleaned (clapped) at the end of each day. We always clapped them against the brick wall of the school building, right near the front door. The black boards were washed each day and washing the black board for the teacher was either a reward for good behavior or a punishment for bad. (For the record, I did my share of washing! Your guess as to which.)

   Above the black board, tacked to the bulletin board, were green cards with the letters of the alphabet. In K-3, they were block letters and after grade three, the cursive letters of the alphabet.

   It was the No 2 yellow pencils for writing, plain 'off white' paper for math and blue lined paper for writing. On occasion we used pens instead of a pencil and I am still trying to remember if this was a time when the ball point pen was taking the place of a 'fountain pen'. But we were never allowed to use a pen for math. What would happen if you made a mistake? Ink didn't erase!

   Let's see now...there were the robins, the blue jays, and the turtles, the poor turtles and poor Joey P, who was a turtle most of his years in school. These were often the names given to the reading groups.

   Remember reading groups? While one group gathered in a circle for reading instruction, the rest of the class was busy at their desks, supposedly doing either map work or doing extra math problems. Nothing to do. How about practicing the alphabet, both the capital and lower-case letters? The teacher called it guided practice time. We called it 'busy' work.

   The worst time of the week... music class. Once a week, the music teacher would come into the classroom and attempt to 'teach' us to sing. She would take out her pitch pipe, pick a note and start to sing “The itsy-bitsy spider. Every day, year after year. In grade 1 or 2 it was probably OK. But in the 6^th grade..... It was always the longest 25 minutes of the week.

   The truth is that I must have found some comfort and pleasure in the classroom. After high school, I went on to college and after spending a year or so in a business administration degree program along with tutoring high school kids at several local high school in some very rural sections of West Virginia in my free time, I decided to become a teacher and school counselor. Those of you who know me know that I spent the next 35+ years at various levels of education before retiring.

   Those early years, both as a student (and I was not always the best student for sure) and as a beginning teacher, taught me the importance and value of a good education and the opportunities a good education provided throughout life.

   Schools have changed a great deal since 1951. From the robins, blue jays and turtle reading groups, to trading in the yellow No 2 pencil for today's latest computers or tablets, today's schools offer opportunities we never dreamed about 65 years ago. But what has remained the same? The importance of studying hard and getting the best education possible.

   And about that music teacher that drove many of us crazy in class for 25 minutes each week, perhaps she was attempting to teach us more about life than music back then. At least we all started the song on the same pitch each time.

 

 Decisions, Decisions, Decisions

   The sun peaks between the curtains in the bedroom window. It's another day. A new beginning. The first question, after a quick trip to the bathroom of course, is 'what to have for breakfast.' Trying to watch my weight, it's not going to be Frosted Flakes or some large cinnamon breakfast pastry. Yogurt again?

   After pouring myself a cup of coffee (no cream or sugar), do I want to watch the news on TV, read the morning paper, or read a few more chapters of the latest novel I started? Opting to read the newspaper, I usually go the 'Horoscopes' first. While I generally do not allow them to determine the kind of day I might have, often they do provide some insight.

   On this particular day I am warned that it will be a day “filled with questions that may require difficult or elusive decisions, potentially effecting the next couple of days ahead.”

   Every day we are confronted with the need to make decisions, some of them very important, ones that could have a powerful impact upon life. As humans, we are generally very bad at making decisions and choices, especially when it comes to the 'big ones.'

   The process of making a big, difficult decision can cause sleepless nights, fear and regret for making the wrong decisions, or just not knowing the potential outcomes of the choices we make.

   Most of the decisions we make on a daily basis occur without really even thinking about them. What to have for breakfast or what to wear to work do not require a great deal of thought, unless you have a job interview and what you wear may have some degree of important. Does this tie really match my sport coat?

   As a child, many of the decisions that affect our lives are made by parents or older brothers and sisters. “If you tell mom or dad about the party, I'll kill you.” But I'm too young to die!

   The first important decision most face is...” What do you want to be when you grow up?”  How do I know? I can't even cross the street by myself yet and now I have to decide on a job or career. Whatever!

   Over time we do learn how to make decisions and we discover that there are really only two things to consider, 'you' and the process you use. It is at this point those things sometimes fall apart.

   The 'you' part is pretty simple. If you are having a good day, the decisions made may work out well, but a bad day may lead to much different results. Under pressure or stress? It probably is not a good day to make that all important decision. Let your body be your guide. Quite simply, how do you feel today?

   In general, good moods often equal good decisions, while bad moods...well, you know.

   The second thing to consider is the process to use. Some people use intuition, others may take a more rational or organized approach, such as laying out a decision tree or map or use the Ben Franklin model, consisting of a piece of paper with two columns, one labeled 'pro', the other 'con'. Worked for him. Will it work for you?

  Some thoughts about making good decisions. First. Listen to instincts, but don't let them be the boss. Next. Try to look at all the alternatives. Third. If you have a bit of time on your side, separate yourself from the emotions of the moment. Distance gives perspective. Fourth. By not making a decision, you are, in actually, making a decision. You are deciding not to decide. Not a good idea if you are seeking an outcome of some kind.

 

   So, what to have for breakfast today? Instead, I think I'll just go back to bed and try to catch an extra minute of sleep.

 

500 Words

 

Putting Life in Perspective

 

   For some reason I have become fixated on age, the passing of time and history. Perhaps it is the result of all the news and events taking place in the world today. Maybe it is the fact that I am doing a bit of downsizing and cleaning out around the house and having to decide what the keep and what to throw away that is causing me to pause and reflect upon items and “things” from the past. Or maybe it’s just looking in the mirror each day and counting the new wrinkles or the seeing less and less hair albeit what’s left is almost white.

But let’s put this into some degree of perspective.

   The year was 1946. That seems like a long time ago and when looking back on those 75 years and the world we live in today, it was a long time ago. A great deal has happened.  Like any other day of the week or year for that matter, people are born, people died and life as it was back then moved on. Looking back, it didn’t seem like there was anything special going on at the time. But maybe there was, and those events may have, either directly or indirectly have contributed to the world as we know it today.

   In 1946 the United Nations held its first meeting with then 51 member nations. The United Nations was formed because the League of Nations, founded during WW I, disbanded. It didn’t work. It is interesting to note that although originally proposed by the United States, the United States never agreed to join the League.

   Bikini bathing suites went on sale in 1946 in Paris. During WW II women’s bathing suites gradually got smaller and smaller and of course this created quite a scandal in some countries around the world. But even though banned for many years in places across Europe, it finally became part of the accepted beach attire.

   Just for the record, the bikini did not hit the shores of the United States until the 1960’s. And today, well……we get a really clear picture of what they look 2021 style.

   And what did it cost to live in 1946?   A new house average cost was $5600. The cost of a gallon of gasoline was 15 cents. A new car average cost was $1120. Interesting though was the cost of the world’s first electric blanket. $39.50. Compared to a new home, that seems a bit pricy. And when was the last time you paid 64 cents for a dozen donuts?

   A couple of other facts…. Tupperware was first sold in department stores. The early beginnings of what would eventually lead to the computer were in development at several colleges. Winston Churchill gave his “Iron Curtain” speech.

   And let’s not forget the names of people who would go on the become famous and influential: Ted Bundy, George W Bush, Jimmy Buffett, Cher, Dolly Parton, Steven Spielberg, Donald Trump and Freddie Mercury, just to name a few.

   The world in 1946 had just experienced several wars and there was a great deal of activity that sought to bring about ‘world peace’ and cooperation among nations. But even with a number of attempts between then and today, we still struggle with the ability to get along with each other.

   The hope from the beginning of time may have always been to learn from experiences, to learn from both past failures and successes, regardless of the year and lead to successes in the future. As decades past and new generations assume roles of leadership, perhaps it might be appropriate to look back at the world as it was and gain the perspective on what was but more importantly, what it could be.

   And about looking into that mirror each day to check out any new wrinkles or the need to get those few remaining hairs trimmed at the local barber shop, it’s all about a perspective. So go ahead. Take a look. It’s not about what was any more but what will be…… if we allow it to happen.