September 1962
We survived the first 3 weeks of School!  We were very proud of our strength and resilience to the eternal punishment of so-called education. The community dogs were kind of stressed, having lost their best friends during the weekdays. My gang of three boys asked for early release to comfort our dogs, but were coldly denied. We vowed to hold it against the teachers until they understood our commitment to dog nurturing. So far, they have remained soooo cold-hearted. We figured being released from school by noon was totally justified and generally community-minded.

That glorious day on the 3rd Saturday in September was all planned for at least 30 minutes on Friday afternoon. The adventure would start at noon on Saturday. The theme was survival with absolute bare necessities. Hide and seek in the shadows of the golden field corn seemed almost beyond our ability, but we had endured the five days each week at school, so we were convinced we had been hardened enough for the adventure. The Green Berets of Birren Avenue were up to the mission!

Bare essentials were as follows for an estimated two-hour test…one canteen, small cast-iron skillet, two boxes of matches, a can opener, several small band aids, referee whistle, a folding pocketknife, 20 feet of rope, can of beans, a BB gun, hatchet or small axe, a raincoat, and flares.

So we slowly hiked to the cornfield…really slow with the bare essentials. Each guy had a small piece of paper that identified who was the finder and who were the hiders, not to be opened until they were all spread out in the field. Unfortunately, Buttface Johnson forgot about his paper in his pants pocket. He was supposed to be the finder. So after about two hours, we all became a little edgy and started hearing strange noises from monsters and other strange animals. Imagination is a strong trait in young guys, no matter how brave they can be. I blew the whistle just as a wild boar was closing in on me from an estimated 15 to 300 feet behind me. Just in time, too! Other whistles were sounding off, meaning clear the field and get to Birren Avenue. We all removed several rows of cornstalks (purely by accident as we dragged our bags of bare essentials), I'm positive. We dumped the bags on the ball diamond and made it home so much faster!  We told many lies that next Monday at school, and were proud to embellish some of them just to make things interesting and keep our great image. I insisted that Buttface keep and read out loud to me that forgotten piece of paper for a month. "I am the Finder." We love school now.

Hug your kids and love your school and neighbors.
Nelly