Well where do I start next. How about elementary school age years. I remember all of my teachers from kindergarten through 6th grade. Something unique about our school was that once I was in 4th grade there were not enough students to have 2 classes like most other schools. We had the same classmates for 4th grade through 6th grade. The only things that changed were our teachers and new students. I think there may have been 1 or 2 who ended moving to another school also. I really liked my elementary school years. I had lots of friends and we had lots of fun. I made a friend in 2nd grade who I continued to be friends with until our high school years. We still talk when we see each other out and about. Our last few years of high school we just went two different ways. Anyway, back to elementary.
I can still remember my first day of kindergarten. I was so mad at my mom. We lived close enough to walk to school, so we did. The only problem was that my mom had me hold hands with the girl next door and took pictures to show all my relatives. I didn't even play with her, just her brother. He was a year older than me and she was only about 3. So you can only imagine a 5 year old boy on the first day of school having to hold hands with a little girl who he thought was just a snotty nosed little brat of a girl. Yeah, I hated it! Well life went on and I accepted the fact that my mom and big sister thought it was "cute".
It was in kindergarten when I first realized that school was actually a good thing. I was able to spell and count. I thought I was on top of the world. I was proud to bring home all S's and a good report. The only thing negative out of all this is that I grew proud of my grades and then became lazy with my school work in junior high. Back then kindergarten was a half day long. My mom was still a stay at home mom at this time so she would often pick me up from school. My brother was usually with her.
The next few years I continued to learn and grow, and grow and GROW. By 6th grade I was already taller than my mom who was around 5'7''. I think I out grew my dad in 8th grade at 6 foot even. I remember my 6th grade teacher mentioning to me near the end of the year that she was amazed at how fast I grew in her class.
Okay, my favorite teachers were my 2nd grade teacher, a man we will call Steve. My fourth grade teacher we will call Mrs. I love all people. She really did. She was such an amazing woman and I couldn't wait to be in her class. She would pray every morning and we would say the pledge to the flag every week. She was an encourager also. Finally my 5th grade teacher, Coach. He was the Jr/Sr high cross country coach. He was the one who introduced the class to the amazing COMMODORE 64. The first computer I ever saw at school. He was strict when it came to homework too.
I remember my first best friends and the guys who I would play football with on recess. My first time hearing a kid my age cuss. My first experience with chewing tobacco. Oh by the way, don't swallow it!! I didn't try it too many more times, and I never did have a habit of it. I remember all the great field trips and the different activities we did in class.
I enjoyed the weekends and summer break. I would ride my bike over to my friends house and we would just have fun doing whatever. I did somethings I regret because I am sure it didn't look good to my friends who weren't Christians. Sorry guys. I never had fights with any of my friends, but some of the older brothers really picked on us. Meanies!!!
My summer breaks after I was about 8 years old(when my dad had his heart attack), were kind of busy. My brother and I had to weed the garden for about 2 to 3 hours every other day. I am glad I learned that discipline because it has helped me now with my own family's garden. We also had to help him split and stack fire wood. Once he had his heart attack, he could no longer go back to work. This was before the laws allowed a person with health issues to work. That was a lot of work for two little boys. He was such a hard working man. I often wondered if he was too hard on us. Oh well. I turned out okay and it has paid off.
We also had to cut, or mow lawns and weed eat for several people. I can remember waking up about 7 am, eating breakfast that our dad made(always something hot), and either being in the woods cutting up trees or mowing a lawn by 8:30 am!! This would continue until about 1 pm when we would come home and eat, or stop on our way home and get a treat at a fast food place. We would then spend until about 4 or 5 pm in the garden or stacking the wood from earlier. I should note that we usually brought several truckloads home in the morning and then split and stacked them that night. After dinner, usually 5:30 or 6pm we were free to roam until dark, usually about 8:30 or 9pm.
Of course a lot of the stuff about splitting wood was done by our dad, we just had to get it and stack it. My dad would often times bring loads of wood with us whenever my brother and I would go camping with the Boy Scouts. I think I joined in 5th grade. I enjoyed the scouting. It taught me a lot about serving others and being a better person. My brother didn't stay with it as long as I did, but he tried.
The Boy Scouts of America is really a great organization. I plan on taking my son to Cub Scouts or even Tiger Cubs when he is old enough. I made a lot of friends through this area and learned a lot of things I never would have learned at home. Some of the things that I remember most was weekend camping once a month and a week long summer camp. My first time camping with no tent was a little scary though. It was part of an initiation to join a fellowship of campers, aka Order of the Arrow.
I should probably stop here for now. My next "Growing up" post will be about the Holidays. Yeah!
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