What I Remember — From Fifth Grade (1961–1962)

I’ve heard it said that a child remembers nothing from his or her first three years. I’ve also heard it said that old people like myself — I turned 73 recently — remember more about their youth than they do about last week. Thus, as I prepare to attend my 55th high-school reunion of the class of 1969 later this summer, I thought it might be interesting to see what I actually remember from those early years, kindergarten through twelfth grade in the Catholic schools I attended in upstate New York. Since I don’t honestly remember much from those early years of school, I thought I would post my vague memories, and perhaps they might stir up the memories of others who attended school during that same era.

One important fourth-grade event that I forgot to mention was our confirmation along with the fifth- and sixth-graders. Apparently, the bishop only visited our church every three years, so if you were in one of those three grades when he visited, you were included. That meant my older sister, Kathy (Class of 68), was confirmed on the same day. I asked my Uncle Sam to be my sponsor because he was such a friendly guy, but I didn’t care for the name “Samuel,” so I chose “Michael” instead (after Mickey Mantle, but don’t tell anyone).

My fifth-grade year was another double grade, but this time, we were combined with a group of fourth graders, and…