It was my sixth birthday and they let us out of school early without any explanation. I lived in the country but attended a ‘city’ school and as I waited for my father to pick me up in front of he schoolhouse, I watched the teachers leaving the building - some gathering in noisy clusters, crying, wailing, clutching each other. Some teach…
It was my sixth birthday and they let us out of school early without any explanation. I lived in the country but attended a ‘city’ school and as I waited for my father to pick me up in front of he schoolhouse, I watched the teachers leaving the building - some gathering in noisy clusters, crying, wailing, clutching each other. Some teachers simply walked silently out of the building and seemed to simply wander off aimlessly. After my father collected me, looking out the station wagon’s windows, I witnessed similar circumstances all over our small town and asked my father what had happened. His answer was honest and clear but so extraordinarily flat that I instinctively knew not to pursue the subject.
When we arrived home, my grandmother and aunt were there comforting my mother who was bawling. They all were. The television was on midday and they were all glued to it. My father joined them silently. Until my older sister gathered me and my younger brother up and took us outside, no one had seemed to notice that we were in the room also. As she bundled us to go into the yard, I saw my cake sitting on the kitchen counter. The icing was only half applied and the spreader lay next to it fully loaded with icing that never made it onto the cake. My sister told me ‘happy birthday’ and took us out to play.
Over the course of the next hours and days, I learned that there were things in the world much, much bigger than me. It was a good lesson. I think it’s when my love of current events took root because I’ve been a news junkie all my life. For years afterward, when people realized when my birthday was, they lamented that it had to fall on such a tragic anniversary. Over the years, that happened less and less - and yesterday, for the first time, it didn’t happen at all.
Happy belated birthday 🎂 I was just a little more than 3 years old when Kennedy was shot. But I understand those lamenting your birthday - my birthday is 9/11
if it cheers you up at all, it's also St. Cecilia's Day...patron saint of music. I think it might be specifically church music, but it's still music.
one thing I remember about the obit page on 11/22/63 is who else was on that page...I recall CS Lewis and Aldous Huxley and will now check...and yes, they both died the same day.
and why hasn't anyone ever made a good movie based on "Brave New World?"
It was my sixth birthday and they let us out of school early without any explanation. I lived in the country but attended a ‘city’ school and as I waited for my father to pick me up in front of he schoolhouse, I watched the teachers leaving the building - some gathering in noisy clusters, crying, wailing, clutching each other. Some teachers simply walked silently out of the building and seemed to simply wander off aimlessly. After my father collected me, looking out the station wagon’s windows, I witnessed similar circumstances all over our small town and asked my father what had happened. His answer was honest and clear but so extraordinarily flat that I instinctively knew not to pursue the subject.
When we arrived home, my grandmother and aunt were there comforting my mother who was bawling. They all were. The television was on midday and they were all glued to it. My father joined them silently. Until my older sister gathered me and my younger brother up and took us outside, no one had seemed to notice that we were in the room also. As she bundled us to go into the yard, I saw my cake sitting on the kitchen counter. The icing was only half applied and the spreader lay next to it fully loaded with icing that never made it onto the cake. My sister told me ‘happy birthday’ and took us out to play.
Over the course of the next hours and days, I learned that there were things in the world much, much bigger than me. It was a good lesson. I think it’s when my love of current events took root because I’ve been a news junkie all my life. For years afterward, when people realized when my birthday was, they lamented that it had to fall on such a tragic anniversary. Over the years, that happened less and less - and yesterday, for the first time, it didn’t happen at all.
Happy belated birthday wishes Connie.
Happy belated birthday 🎂 I was just a little more than 3 years old when Kennedy was shot. But I understand those lamenting your birthday - my birthday is 9/11
if it cheers you up at all, it's also St. Cecilia's Day...patron saint of music. I think it might be specifically church music, but it's still music.
one thing I remember about the obit page on 11/22/63 is who else was on that page...I recall CS Lewis and Aldous Huxley and will now check...and yes, they both died the same day.
and why hasn't anyone ever made a good movie based on "Brave New World?"