The Sixth Grade

Tonight we went to a choir concert at the Middle School. The first Little Jogger is in the choir this year. It was a pretty good concert. They did a lot of good songs, like "Amazing Grace," and "500 Miles," and "Puff the Magic Dragon." (They did Bowdlerize Puff, leaving out the verse where Jackie Paper grows up and Puff sadly slinks into his cave.) I enjoyed it, anyway.

We were there early, watching the kids running around and laughing and nudging each other, and I noticed that the first Little Jogger kind of kept to herself. She's comfortable enough with her friends, but she clearly isn't the kind of kid who just knows everyone and works a room. I got to thinking that it was just about sixth grade that I began to morph into a real geek. Up until then, I was just a kid, but sixth grade is when the cool kids start to sort themselves out, and I wasn't one. I don't recall that I enjoyed it much. I hope that the first Little Jogger won't have it quite as rough as I did. But I know that she's going to have to live her own life, and that I won't be able to protect her.