Third Grade

 

I love old pictures, images frozen in time, usually tell no tales that are true. With the advent of technology that is all changed of course. One can make anything they wish out of a photo from the past if they want and have the technology,, patience and desire to do so. Not me however. I like to look at the image look past the obvious the trail and look at that less obvious items in a photo. Sometimes there are clues in the photo that remain hidden until they are needed for one reason or another. Today for example, as I was looking through images on some of my historic files came upon this image of Mrs. Petersons third-grade class 1959/1960. I never really paid attention to the dates in this image before today. I've always been more interested in the individuals sitting calmly with their hands folded nicely in front of them (if you're sitting on the first row) or just either looking at the camera are stirring often idly in the space when the photographer press the plunger on the camera freezing this moment for eternity.

I'm always amazed to think of how many of these images still exist in boxes, photo albums are drawers in the family home for all four girls are kept. I was also fascinated with how many kids are in each class. For example Ms. Petersons 13 girls 17. 30 students if everybody was there for picture taking day. That seems to me a huge amount of kids. I still almost no names of everyone of those kids in that image. Some I have forgotten on the back of the original image that was scanned into this computer my mother laboriously wrote the names of the kids. Even if I have the names for some of the faces I don't recognize the names do not help wonder who these people were that I didn't know after being in class a whole year. This picture I'm sitting next to my best friend John .Where in the front row job in the check shirt looking tough me sitting next to him and that weird shirtWith the weird button collar. I never did understand that shirt and is always kind of embarrassed to wear it but I wore what was given to me I still didn't have much choice of anything the third grade. I hate to say it but I looked as effeminate John looked tough or masculine. Third grade, smack dab in the middle of grade school. This was the year that we finally got to keep things in our own desk. I thought that was so cool pencils, ruler, scissors, Elmers glue and all kinds of papers. This was my first realization that the chaos that was my bedroom could also be translated over to my desk. Third grade. This was the year that I sit in the back row next to the back windows feeling secure enough to do things I should not be doing. I was fascinated with Elmers glue. Somewhere I had experienced Elmers glue drying's completely smooth on a fingertip or something and I was interested to see what would happen if I shot glue on all my fingertips and let them dry. How cool would this be? Well I tried this I was so focused on the experiment that I neglected to see Mrs. Peterson circulate among the desks when she came to mind I can still remember her pull me up by my shirt and dragging me over to the sink and washing my hands. Sure there is yelling that went on, not me so much as Mrs. Peterson. I don't remember but I do remember though is kind feelings for Mrs. Peterson she was one of the best teachers I've had. Today is Adrienne Moulton's birthday she 70 years old! That number so hardFor me to wrap my brain around. Adrian is the second row from the top third from the right. She looks like a Mouseketeer for some reason my mind. I really liked her remember sitting with her one afternoon when I miss the bus under a tree in front of Campus school waiting for our parents to come and fetch us. I thought I was when the luckiest kids on earth. I really like this class I think of there could be a reunion this would be one I would go to with anticipation and excitement…