Those were the days, weren’t they? Those first couple days back to elementary school when the weather was still great, everyone had changed—especially the girls—and there wasn’t too much homework, yet… There was the time that back-to-school shopping netted me this really cool shirt with a fuzzy stripe across the front. It looked like someone had skinned a couple fox squirrels and sewn them there. It was a long-sleeved, flannel-weight shirt and it was a very hot early September day, but I was determined to wear it anyway. I was the sharpest dude at Russell Elementary… cool and sweaty at the same time!
I remember my first day at college, too, waving at my folks as they drove away. The first guy I met was named Bill, just like my best buddy at home. Bill asked: “Do you know where we can get a basketball?” We found one, found two other guys, took them on, and beat them soundly. Who knew that “Bill” was Billy Kalbaugh a four-year scholarship point guard who led the Bonnies to an NCAA final four appearance a few years later? And later that night, I met John who has been a best friend ever since that September day in 1966. What a great back-to-school day that was.
And that first day of grad school as a 50-year old, “non-traditional” student… Man, those classmates sure looked young… most young enough to be my kids. Looked smart, too, and energetic… “What am I doing here?” came to mind. Then we met Dr. McCarthy the instructor for our first course. Then we learned we’d have him for some others. At break time we learned from other students that he was the toughest prof of them all. Yikes! Scary!
Looking back across those “first days back” I just noticed there isn’t much focus on academic learning. Oh well, they still were great experiences or they wouldn’t still be this strong in my usually weak memory.
These days, I think EVERYONE should be thinking: “back to school.” I’m not saying we should all necessarily matriculate (don’t get to use that word very often) to some formal school or class. I’m saying we ought to think about life-long learning from all the experiences we can pick from. Attend a city council or township supervisors’ meeting. Go to a lecture on a topic you know nothing about. Go to a school play or concert or game even if you don’t have kids involved. Take a walk through town. Look around, look up and down, see what’s there that you’ve been missing. There are a lot of things you never notice when driving by at 35 miles an hour.”
What else has lessons to teach us? Nature certainly does. Over the next few weeks, we’ll be once again treated to fall foliage. Think about it… The earth is a pretty big place, but we live in a relatively narrow band where that happens to the glorious extent we enjoy. I wonder if there is similar band all around the world and in the southern hemisphere… I’ll have to check that out.
It never ceases to amaze me all the “stuff” going on in this town. The newspaper is a treasure trove of information on attractions and activities. In any given week there are literally pages of ideas on where to go for new experiences. Again, “going to school” doesn’t necessarily mean attending some formal institution. You will find “teachers” and “classmates” all over. Consider clubs, sports, radio controlled racing, HAM radio operation, local theater activities… the list is endless. And I am 100% positive folks involved in these things will be downright excited if you show up; every “school” has its “teachers.” I’ve made a promise to myself that over the next few months I am going to check out a woodworking class and learn how to process digital photos.
One of the beauties of this informal education is that you can simply try stuff without much expense, or any fear of failure.
I’ve always thought that September 1 should be considered the first of the year. Schools, clubs and organizations, churches, etc., are all firing up programs right now. Happy “back to school” time! Let’s all get out there and learn something new!
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