Saturday, March 8, 2008

Good Ole' School Days

The last stop on my Sunday drive last week was at this one room school house. It was built in 1884 and used for grades one through eight until 1956. It was dismantled and moved from its original spot seven miles from where it stands today. It has original desks, pot-bellied stove, slate chalkboards, a pump and an outhouse.

Years ago my parents had a choice when it was time for me to begin my school career. They were informed I could ride the bus into “town” to go to the public elementary school there or the bus would drop me off about halfway there at a small one room school house. My parents chose the town school. Every day the bus would stop and drop off those students attending the one room school and then off to the city the rest of us would go. I attended school in that one building from grade one to grade eight. I liked school and have many wonderful memories of those elementary years.

However, I still often wonder what it would have been like in that little one room school house. Everyday as we stopped to get those other students we could anticipate a glorious story of something that had happened. We heard who fell in the creek, a story about the, um, – outhouse, the baseball games or tag. I particularly remember there were many stories about a young boy who was always getting into something. He was a little cross-eyed and the boys had a running joke about his antics. They always said,”It would have killed any ordinary man.” And, always we heard their laughter each and every day.

I’m not sure if those students missed out on anything; but I think maybe I did.

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

Makes me think about Miss Hunter, the schoolteacher, and the Walton kids and their friends who attended the one-room schoolhouse in the TV show that I still like to watch.

This Is My Blog - fishing guy said...

Carletta: I loved the story.
The new Beach Boys music adds a special touch.
We are getting blasted up north.

Carletta said...

Fireflynights: I started to title this "Shades of Mary Ingalls." Loved how they walked to school and enjoyed just everything.

Fishing guy:
Thank you. I sorta need the upbeat Beach Boys today - we're being blasted here as well, but I see a robin and a cardinal in my oak tree.

Tara said...

You have to wonder! Of course, if you attended the one rm school house you'd be wondering what it would have been like in town, too!

But it would have been quaint!

:0)
Tara