August 3rd 1982. I had been anticipating this day for a bit longer than most of the first year students because it was an entire year ago that I had been let down when we found out I was not yet old enough to start school. My birthday being just a week beyond the date of cutoff. Needless to say I was ready to start, ready to make new friends, and ready to show off my unmatched coloring skills and scissor play. The prior years rejection left my creative mom with a very disappointed and eager son, so Kindergarten began early regardless of that hick-up, only instead of Mrs. Inge and a classroom full of students, I became the first pupil of Mrs. Glen' s Early Development School. My younger brother Joey, who also would attending, was a disruptive addition to the project at least in my view, but then again he was only 2yo at the time. Now to be clear, my mother was an amazing person. When it came to crafts, she could make a masterpiece out of a toilet paper roll, a popcycle stick, some cotton, twine, and a hot glue gun. it still amazes me to this day how many quilts she made, afghans she crocheted, or holiday and wedding cakes she constructed over the years. That being said as annoying as I thought my kids brother was she managed to keep both of us busy with "school" four hours a day 5 days a week. Coloring and crafts were not the main focus of my teachers curriculum, although they were done on a daily basis. No, I been able to say the English alphabet since before my brother arrived and now it was time to learn how to write each letter both upper and lower case and attach a predetermined sound to each letter . It wasn't long and she had me stringing letters and sounds together forming words. She skipped right over three letter words knowing that words like "drum" and "cast" if and when realized would be absorbed naturally into an already spongy mind that got plenty of exercise. Looking back at it now it's seems like I should have been more grateful for having been given such a perfect beginning. As great as her school was I was still bitter about not getting to start the year before, but after a year with my mother teaching me Mrs. Inges class was boring. All of the learning activities for the entire year were like a distant review. I'd been writing compound words for the last two months and could write complete sentences with correct punctuation and writing structure. I could write my name in perfect cursive before my first day with Mrs Inge. I remember because in the name slot on my very first class paper I did and while the students at the desks closest to me laughed Mrs Inge made me erase it and print it. Explaining to me that labeling a document or lesson as ones work is not the same as signing a contract by signature. Nonetheless she was impressed with me as a pupil. It was shaping up to be a very easy and boring year. Recess was the only thing about that year that I looked forward to.
Chapter 1