“The best way to cheer yourself up is to try to cheer somebody else up0.” (Mark Twain)
Hello, my lovely friends!
With a new school year1 starting, it's the perfect time to reminisce about our own days in the classroom. This week, let's share some memories from our grade school years.
1. I went to preschool for a single day. When I was four, my family moved from one side of Denver to the other. My mom took me to a local preschool, but for some reason, she didn't like it. So, after just one day, I never went back.
My kindergarten experience was also a bit unusual, as I attended two different schools. The first was in a converted duplex next to a park. Then, the same school moved to a building in the warehouse district.
There was no grade school to attend at the time, but construction began on one when I was in the second grade. By the time I started third grade, the new school was complete, and all the students moved over to the new building.
2. When I was in fourth grade, my only major childhood injury happened while playing tetherball. I sprained my ankle after smacking it against the metal pole. I still remember watching it swell up in class afterward. That same summer, I re-injured the same ankle twice more.
3. At my new grade school, I was part of a program for gifted and talented students called Club 34 and Club 56. Acceptance was based on a combination of test scores and grades. Throughout grade school, I was a member of these clubs, where we focused on project-based learning and problem-solving. In Club 56, our main project was designing a new community in a nearby area. It was a large-scale, science-based project, and ironically, I now live in the very community we helped create.
4. My first experience with love and heartbreak happened in 6th grade with a boy named Angelo. He was in the classroom next to mine, and we'd meet for lunch and sit together during movies in the auditorium. He even called me at home, which felt incredibly grown-up. When we broke up, I was completely heartbroken. The thought of going to school felt unbearable. My mom noticed how sad I was and asked me what was wrong. When I told her about Angelo, she let me stay home that day. Instead of sending me to class, we spent the day cooking together in the kitchen, a gentle comfort during my first real heartbreak.
5. Throughout my time in elementary school, I was a high-achieving student. I made the honor roll every grading period since the third grade, an accomplishment that earned me a special award in sixth grade. I was also consistently recognized for my character, receiving the "Good Citizen" award every year based on nominations from teachers and students. My academic performance was so strong that had my elementary school named a salutatorian, I would have been it.
So glad you stopped by! Wishing you the coziest morning/afternoon/evening ahead. Can't wait for our paths to cross again.
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