Back To School

A-Team Lunch Box

I spotted a schoolbus picking up kids for school this morning on my street, this, I assume, means that school is back. I was never fond of school. It just meant that there was yet another obstacle in the way of getting outside with my friends. The back-to-school shopping was o.k. Getting a new Trapper Keeper was second only to getting a new lunchbox (the old thermos did start to smell of cheese after a while). But nothing could quite sooth the sting of the return to the classroom.

The last major event of the summer was my brother’s (Christian) birthday party at the pier park. My Aunt, Uncle, and cousins would meet with my parents and I to celebrate and get a quick swim (if it wasn’t already too cold). We would cook up some sort of burgers or hot dogs, chow on my mom’s famous potato salad, and walk up and down the harbor planks checking out the boats. By sunset you could hear the cicadas signaling that summer was nearly over.

The B.R.A.T. Patrol would spend every remaining minute of the summer break to it’s fullest. Skateboarding, RC car racing, bikes, army, anything and everything that we wanted to get into the summer before it was over. Then, one-by-one, each family would return to their respective schools. Interestingly, none of us went to school together. Detroit public schools (sadly) were not an option, so we each went to our respective parochial schools. This is probably what kept out friendships so strong. Nobody got caught up in the drama of school niches or the who’s most popular game.

We would share the stories of the new school year with each other either in Ryan’s fort or on somebody’s front porch. Knowing that Halloween was coming kept us from being too upset. Especially because this meant our Ghostbusting work would be picking up!

Add comment September 6th, 2006 by duane