The beginning of an honored friendship...

After 3 fun filled years of school at Lincoln, me and all my other classmates were divided up and sent to 1 of 3 other schools.  The choices were Garden (North side), Kohn (East side) and Wilson (next to the high school).  I was one of the students that were selected to go to Garden.  This was in the mid 1970's and you would think that a small town in California would not have race concerns, but this was a reverse race situation, because it was my aunt and uncle that had concerns with me going over to the North side of the city.  Garden was in an area of the city that was considered to be middle to upper middle class; families that had very good paying jobs and very nice urban homes.  No daily violence within the area, just peaceful streets with kids playing in a safe neighborhood.  It was quite different than my neighborhood where there were fights, drugs, drunks, punks and everything else that you would find in the ghetto.

My aunt had concerns because there were not that many African-Americans that lived in that area of the city.  She was concerned that I would be picked on because of my race.  So of course, being told all of that before starting school, I was a nervous wreck on the first day of school.  I was afraid to get off the bus!  On the ride over to the school I was not sure what to expect.  We made the final turn to get to the school and to my delight; it was just a normal day and a normal school with kids having fun.  The concerns of the older generation were not the concern of the kids that were having fun at the school.  So I quickly started to feel better and looked forward to meeting new people.  As I make my way to the playground I am greatly shocked and sad to see that there is no Eagle's Nest, no Monkey Bars, just some lame slides, swings and merry-go-round.  WHAT AM I GOING TO DO IF I CAN'T SHOW MY ABILITY TO DOMINATE THE EAGLE'S NEST?  They call this a playground, there is nothing here to cause blisters, and give you that great feeling of dropping a few feet to the ground.  What in the world would we play with, how would we have any fun at all?  Where is the danger and excitement of metal playground equipment other than the slide that was there?  But wait, there is hope yet....two bars one high and one low that I noticed kids sitting on and locking their legs at the ankle and then doing a full circle rotation around the bar.  Using the same bars, I noticed some girls hanging upside down by their knees and doing a move called the Cherry Drop. WOW, there is some excitement and adventure.

But wait, there is something not right about this, it is only the girls that are doing these things on these two bars.  What!!!!  No guys are brave enough?  NEVER!!!!  I watched the girls carefully and learned what to do. So I politely asked if I could try and the girls giggled and said yes.  Excellent!!!  I jumped up on the bar and made my way to the middle, and knew in my head that I was about to show these girls that this is one guy who will not be shown up by an icky girl!  It's my big chance to show everyone that guys are always better than girls at doing athletic things on and off the playground.  With absolute confidence, I slide out to the middle of the bar and try to remember how the girls would do the circle.  Got it, I just have to...umm...I have to...OH NO...OUCH!!!!!!!  Let's just say that the bar had to go somewhere it was not meant to be on guys, and I very quickly understood why NONE of the guys were even near that thing.  I quickly got down and walked away rather gingerly and never looked back on those bars ever again.  That was a terrible lesson to learn in the first week of school.

I got to know many of the kids and really liked my new school, because everyone except one person was always nice.  That one bad apple was a guy named John and he loved to pick on people that were smaller than he was.  One day I noticed that he was picking on one of the guys from my class and I liked this guy because he was cool and funny.  So I walked over to John and just told him to leave this kid alone.  John did not stop and I noticed this other kid was trying to do the right thing and walk away, but John would not leave him alone.  So one more time, I told John to leave him alone.  John stopped and then turned around and pushed me rather hard which caused me to trip and fall to the ground.  Well that was enough for me, so I jumped up and decked him in the face and tackled him to the ground and hit him a few times.  We rolled around on the ground for a while fighting until the teachers got there and took both of us to the office.  Well, we were both sent home for the day, and boy did I get in trouble when I got home.  I could not sit down for a while after the spanking I received for fighting.

The following week, we were back at school and to my surprise the kid that I stopped John from picking on, came up to me before class and said thank you.  That made me feel good and he asked me to play with him and his friends during recess.  I made a new friend and he is white!!!  This new friend was rather skinny and a little shorter than the rest of us, so I thought it was cool to have my first white friend.  Over the next few weeks, we became good friends and he asked me to come to his birthday party.  WOW, I have never been to a birthday party, but wait; I don't have money to get him a gift, so I had to tell him that I couldn't because I couldn't afford to get him anything.  He laughed at me and quickly said, "I don't want any gifts, I just want my friends to be there at my party".  That response made me feel great.  I couldn't wait to get home to tell my aunt about the invite.

That night at home, I told my aunt about the invite and she had a lot of questions that I had to get answers to before she would say yes.  So I told her that I have the phone number of the kid's parents and asked my aunt to call and talk with them.  She called, spoke for about 5 minutes and then told me that I would be able to go!  YES, my first birthday party!!!

On the day of the party, my aunt took me over to my friend's house and then his mom put all of us in a station wagon and we headed to Visalia to go to a place called Roller Town.  It was the coolest thing ever, with video games, food, music, lights and my new friend.  Only one major problem...I didn't know how to roller skate at all, but my friend taught me how to skate and I started to have fun with everyone again. We had so much fun that when we were all done; my friend asked his mother if I could spend the night.  WOW, I have never spent the night over at a friend's house before.  His mother called my aunt and she agreed and I was so happy to spend more time with my new best friend.  We played with nearly every toy he had and just had a great time....until he tried to teach me how to play Croquet.

I was trying my best to understand how to play the game and we were having fun, but that all came to a crashing halt when I swung the mallet a little too hard and I hit my friend in the mouth and cut his lip.  He was screaming and crying and ran inside.  I was so sad that I hurt my friend that I stood in the front yard crying because I was afraid of getting yelled at by his mother.  All of a sudden his father arrived home from work and approached me in the yard and asked if something was wrong.  I was so afraid to tell this tall man that I just hurt his son.  But I gathered up my courage and tearfully told him what happened.  I was saying sorry so much and crying that his dad felt bad.  He went inside to see how his son was doing and talk to his wife.  I stayed on the porch because I was too afraid to go inside.  When I no longer could hear my friend crying, I knocked on the door and asked if his mom could call my aunt to come pick me up so that I could go home.  No sooner then I said that, my friend comes running into the living room and begs his mother not to call my aunt because he still wanted me to spend the night.  I was greatly surprised.  Just then his father said, "well Michael, you did something that his cousins have been wanting to do for a long time… hit him in the mouth".  They all laughed, but I still had tears in my eyes, so my friend came over and said that he was ok and that he was not mad at all.  I was so happy that I gave him a big hug and promised him that I would never hurt him again and that I would always protect him from anyone and everyone that would try to hurt him.

Who knew that on that day, I would have the honor and pleasure to know one of the greatest guys ever.  His name is Philip and even now, 33 years later, Philip still knows that I will do everything in my power to protect him.  Even though we don't get to talk as much as I would like, he knows that I love him like he was my own brother.  In my eyes, Philip can do no wrong and if anyone should ever try to say something bad or negative about him, they will have me to deal with.

Philip still lives in Tulare with his beautiful wife and two cute as can be kids.  Every time I go to Tulare I try to get in touch with him, but our schedules don't match up right for me to see my dear friend.  I miss him greatly, and just wish I would have moved back to Tulare like he told me to do many years ago.

I do keep tabs on him as much as I can and try to find out what he is up to lately.  I can honestly say, that Philip is one of the kindest people you would ever have the pleasure of knowing.  I believe that I am a better person because I know and can call him my friend.

Phillip, I don't know if you will ever read this, I want you to know that I love you, I have always loved you and I will always love you my dear friend.  Like I said before, you are like a brother to me and even though I am a few days older than you, I still look up to you!  I am so proud of you!!!

The really early years of education...

When I think back to my years at Lincoln Elementary School in Tulare, I am very thankful that the school districts ended "Capital Punishment" because our principal at the time was more than willing to not "spare the rod...".  She had a nice little belt hanging on the wall in her office.  When my cousins told me about the belt they did not leave out any details about the manner in which the principal would pop the "bad" kids that came to her office.  It was bad enough that I would get the belt at home, let alone get it at school as well.  GIVE A KID A BREAK...can't be nice all of the time, what do you expect from a kid.  We had to do things that would get us in trouble.  Yes contrary to popular opinion, I was not a perfect angel all of the time.  There was that 10% troublemaker deep down inside of me that had to come out. Let's talk about a few of those RARE occasions when i was less than a perfect angel.

Little Girls - Trust or Not to Trust...That is the question...

It was always fun to do finger painting, learning to cut little figures out of craft paper and learning the art of teasing those icky girls.  Ok, let's just skip to the icky girls part because that was where the real fun was, until I met Missy.  Every girl that had pigtails was my first target each week.  When the teacher was not watching, I would pull on their hair just to hear "ow, stop it or I am going to tell".  Of course at that moment my eyebrows would form the horns of a little devil.  During crafting time, I would find one of the girls that was not paying attention and put glue on the outside of the glue bottle.  As we all know, at that age, little girls do not like having their hands covered in anything sticky or messy.  I would even go so far to put glue on their chair so that they would sit in it.  Yes I was a little brat as often as I could, provided that I didn't get caught in the act.  I was the king of the classroom, the boys liked the jokes and the girls would always stay away.  Nobody could stand in my way of taking over the class...until SHE came to my class.  SHE is Missy and Missy was very cute and had a smile that would just make us boys just stare at her.  After a few days of watching me play jokes on all of the other victims, I mean girls...she befriend me and took my defenses completely down.  She would hang around me at recess and we would laugh and tell jokes to each other.  Maybe girls are not icky at all; maybe they are cool and fun to be with. WRONG!!!!!  Missy lured me into her web with kindness, fun and laughter.  While we were sitting next to each other in class waiting for the teacher to give us our watercolor paints, things were going great.  Missy being the kind girl that she was, she went to get the little cup of water that we would use to clean paint off of the brushes.  She walked to the sink, turned it on and filled up the plastic cup.  As she walked back to the desk, I noticed how full it was and told her that it was too full.  She wasn't' paying attention at the moment so I figured she didn't hear me.  As she gets to the desk, I tell her again and she looks me in the eye and poured the entire cup of water into my lap.  Then says very loudly, "Eww, Mike peed on himself!".  As I stand up to tell the teacher, all of the girls in class start laughing and pointing at me.  Even the boys started to laugh and point at me.  The tears started to fall as I was taken to the office so that the school could call my Aunt to bring me a change of clothes.  LESSON LEARNED...what goes around, comes around, and at times can be very wet.

The Sun, the fun and the blisters...

The greatest playground equipment that I do not see around today is the Eagle's Nest, Monkey Bars and Jungle Gym.  Most of the time when I drive by a school I do not see these iron beasts of fun.  The Eagle's Nest was the best because it was a half dome object that was roughly 10 feet from the ground at the center and the entire structure was built using triangles.  I tried to find a picture of one, but I cannot find one.  I even drove back to Tulare to take a picture of the one at Lincoln, but it is no longer there. I noticed that most schools have completely replaced these monsters of the playground.  I say monsters because only the brave would dare to climb to the top of the Eagle's Nest and sit there as though they were King of the Hill!  Yes, I am that person; I would claim the top for myself and dare anyone to remove me from my small seat of power.  If anyone tried, the battle was on and the last person hanging would be the winner.  Yes I said the last person hanging, because in order for you to fight for the right to be at the top, you and your competition had to be at the top, and hang from the top as you used your legs to grab a person and pull them down.  There would be a 6-8 foot drop for the loser, and a quick acrobatic move for the winner to claim the top.  Now that I think about it, maybe they removed the Nest because it was teaching kids to fight and to dominate each other.

Now that I think about it, several games we played back in the 70s are long gone from the schools.  The best game of the all and might make a few of you have nightmares.....DODGE BALL!!!!  Oh man, that was my all time favorite game to play because I was fast and nearly hard to hit with the ball.  Many of the times that we would play the game, I was one of the first 2 people picked to be on a team.  The other team would hate the fact that I was quick and had no trouble using teammates as shields to get our team the victory.  Although there were some moments of stinging pain from the ball slapping me in the face or back; I did not cry, even when the ball was hitting me in a more southern area.  I would always remember the lucky few that had the ability to take me out of the game, because they would become my targets for sweet revenge.  I always had a plan to get the people I wanted to nail with the ball.  My friends knew the right time to get the ball to me to enact my revenge (evil laughter inserted here).

I was only able to play with these items and certain games while I attended Lincoln (1-3) because for the 4th grade, I was bused to a school across town.  You read correctly, I was bused to the "rich" side of town and was nervous as could be and disappointed at their playground.  But hey, that is another story for another day because that was the beginning of a new adventure attending Garden School.

The building of a man...

For this segment I am going to break from the timeline and jump around to different points in my life.  I must apologize for the length of this portion, because it is rather long, because I have so many dear moments/memories with each person.  I want to pay homage to those Ladies that helped me along the way...

It has been said, "Behind every good man, there is a great woman", and I know this to be absolutely true for my life.  This is my testimony to 6 ladies that have been a driving force in my life.  For those ladies that I do not mention, please understand that I do care and love you all, but these 6 are at the top because each has used the "tools of life" to help me build a foundation, frame the skeleton, protect from the elements, fill the structure with love, live in the structure and lend support when the structure needed repair/maintenance.

Erma Rowland - My dear and beloved mother.  She is the starting point for my life. A male cannot become a man without the love of a mother.  That love is the security blanket of life and nothing on this earth can take away the love a mother can for her child.  My mother passed away on August 4, 1986 when I was only 18.  Since I lived in California with my aunt and uncle, I did not have the opportunity to live with my mother for the entire 18 years.  But that does not mean I did not have my "blanket".  As I was growing up, I would write to my mother about the different accomplishments that I would achieve while I was going through school.  Every few weeks, we would be on the phone and talk for a long time.  Every two years we would make the journey from California to Oklahoma and spend at least 2 weeks there with the family.  As soon as I would get into town I would go over to my mother's house and stay with my brothers and sisters.  The one thing that I miss the most since my mother's passing is the hugs that she would give.  My mom would wrap her arms around me and just hold me.  Even now as I think back to the last hug I received, I feel warmth that can never be duplicated. (One moment please, I have tears in my eyes but not of sadness, but of happiness)  Mom, I love you and I miss you, but I know you created a "blanket" for me and I still use the blanket.  The last time I seen and spoke with my mother was at the hospital in Oklahoma City, where she was losing her battle with breast cancer.  Before my mother passed away, she told my older brothers and sisters that she was only going to hold on until I arrived from California.  Even with the Angel of Death so near to her, she refused to give up her spirit until she was able to see and talk with all of her children.  I arrived in Oklahoma on August 2 and went directly to the hospital and spent time with mom.  Mom did not want her boys to cry in front of her, because she wanted us to be strong for our sisters. I tried with all my might to hold back the tears, but it was too hard, and I allowed one tear to flow down my cheek.  I have cried many times in my life, but after the passing of my mother, I cried for a long time, and I still want to cry even now.

Lois Lewis - My dear and beloved aunt.  My aunt for all intense purposes became my second mother.  She raised me after I moved with her and my uncle to California.  My aunt was a God fearing woman that was a loving soul to everyone that had the pleasure of meeting her and knowing her. It is still hard on me to talk about my aunt because her passing was the next painful moment in my life that I thought I would not make it through.  It has been 4 years now (April 27, 2006) when she passed away from her battle with cancer as well.  Since my mother was my blanket, my aunt was my comforter.  She was that extra protection from the cold winds of life that seemed to find its way into my life at times.  When I would have my moments of weakness and doubt, I only had to pick up the phone and call my aunt.  Many times when I would call, she would answer "I knew you were going to call, because I felt something was wrong".  Just hearing those words each time, told me that we had a bond that was unspoken. My aunt raised me in a church and religious environment that enriched my soul and helped me know right from wrong.  Her teachings and lessons are still with me today, even though at times I walk my own path.  But I know when I need her, she is still there as an angle over my shoulder.  The weekend before she passed away, I drove to Tulare with my sons, so that they could see their "Granny".  The nurse brought in some beef broth for her to have, and without hesitation I grabbed a spoon and the broth and began cooling it off and feeding it to her.  It was my turn to take care of her, and I did it with pride. Without my aunt knowing, the rest of the family was planning a surprise birthday party and the Community Center in Tulare for her birthday on May 11.  Behind the scenes my cousin Yvonne, her mother and I were getting money together and calling all of my aunt's friends to join us for the celebration. She had never had a birthday party put together for her and we knew this had to be the event of the year for everyone invited and the celebration of a lifetime for her. Even while she lay in the hospital we all continued to do more and more for her surprise party.  Everyone knew that she would make it out of the hospital because everyone was praying for her.  But 14 days from her birthday, our Lord and Savior decided that he wanted her to come home and be with him in Heaven.  I was happy that she was no longer in pain and that she was at peace with the Lord.  I got the phone call late at night while I was working on a project for work.  All I could do is scream from the pain that was now piercing my heart because I was alone.  My "blanket" and "comforter" have left this mortal life and began their eternal life.

(Yes, I have tears in my eyes again at this moment and my heart aches, but I will continue.)

Sheila Rowland - My dear and beloved sister.  My sister Sheila was the split image/soul of our beloved mother.  After mom passed away she was the one that picked up the pieces and became the person to go to when you needed to talk about the problems of life.  Sheila was a religious lady that loved life and everyone.  She worked at a day care center and was loved by so many children that she helped take care of from day to day.  She was full of life and always had words of wisdom and kindness to give to those that needed her.  Over the years as I was growing up, she and I was talk on the phone for hours at a time.  We would tell jokes to each other and just laugh until it hurt to laugh.  One day I get a phone call from Oklahoma and it was my older sister Gaby.  She informed me that Sheila was in the hospital for surgery because she had developed breast cancer.  Oh God, not again, please don't put our family through this again, not now, the pain of losing our mother is still there after 12 years.  The Lord listened to our prayers and wishes and gave Sheila back to us.  She made a complete recovery from her battle with cancer.  Oh thank you Lord!  During a business trip to Fort Worth, I decided to stay for the weekend and drive up to Oklahoma to see my family.  My cousin drove to Fort Worth, picked me up at the hotel and we headed to Oklahoma.  As soon as we arrived, my cousin took me directly to see my sister Sheila at work.  She knew I was coming into town that day, but figured that she would see me after work.  I walked into the day care center, and asked for Sheila.  They pointed me in the right direction.  I opened the door to the area where the toddlers played and there she was, playing with the kids.  I walked up behind her and said, "Is there room for me to play also?".  She quick replied, "of course there is always room to play with the kids".  She turned around to see me and just let out a scream of joy.  The other people she worked with came running because they thought something was wrong.  She grabbed me and gave me a hug that was so strong I had trouble breathing for a few moments.  I had to say, "Sheila I know you are happy to see me but let me breath girl!".  For the next 30 minutes she introduced me to all of the kids and her co-workers as "this is my baby brother 'Mikey' from California".  (Word of advice, ONLY MY SISTERS CAN GET AWAY WITH CALLING ME MIKEY). The rest of my visit was wonderful; me and Sheila hung out at our cousin Mila's house and just talked up a storm for the two days that I was there.  A few years later, I received a phone call from Sheila in which she explained that the breast cancer is back and more aggressive than before.  We talked for a while and talked of the past.  Deep down inside I knew that I only had a little while left with my sister.  Then one day our oldest sister called me before work and gave me the news that Sheila was in the hospital.  I called the hospital and talked with her for a little while until she needed to rest.  One of the last things we talked about was me getting to Oklahoma to be with her while she was alive.  Sheila knew how hard it was for me to get back there at the time, so she just told me that I didn't need to be there, because I was always with her in her heart and in her mind.  Two days later, she passed away.  My oldest sister called and told me and I made arrangements to get there for her funeral.  As a testimony to her kindness, there were 3 young men that she use to watch in day care that sang the Boyz II Men song "It's so hard to say goodbye to yesterday".  As soon as they started to sing the first chorus of the song, me and my two older brothers started to cry.  We tried to do as mom has always told us to be strong for our sisters, but this time, our sisters were strong for their brothers.

So those are the 3 ladies that were the most important female figures in my life as I was growing up.  And I can truly say that I am blessed to have known and been loved by all 3.  I know each portion ended with the tragic death of each, taken by cancer.  That is why I beg everyone that ever reads this blog, to donate and/or be very supportive of loved ones that suffer from cancer.

Michelle Rowland - My wife, friend and mother of my children.  There are so many things that can be said about Michelle: friend, provider, supportive, tough, strong and the most important thing...a mother.  The relationship that I have with Michelle is like no other.  When I am weak, she is strong; when I am confused, she is wise (even a wise ass too); when I am troubled, she is a listener; when her sheep are in danger, she is the Sheppard and the wolf to those that show intent on hurting her flock.  There are things that have happened in the 20 plus years that we have known each other that make us who we are today.  If I ever had to go through hell to battle anything, Michelle is the warrior that I would want by my side.  She was there when I lost my sister, and knew that she needed to step up as my shoulder.  She was there when I lost my aunt, and knew that she needed to be my rock during my heart ache.  Michelle has become my ultimate protector and I know she will do what it takes to ensure that I am OK.  Even to the point that if someone really does me wrong; they would have to deal with her first.  The saying, "Hell hath no fury like a woman's scorn", just mess with me or her sons in the wrong way and you will know the fury that is Michelle.  It is amazing, for someone only 5 foot and some change tall, there is a strength to her that is unmatched in my life. When life tries to knock her back, she takes the hit and comes out swinging and saying "oh hell no, is that all you got, I'm a kick your @$$".  Not to mention, in those moments where I forget my place (or "training" as you woman say) she is ready to put me back in my place as well and make me go through refresher training as needed.  (Although at times I act like I forgot the "training"; I am really just testing the waters like any guy would do.)

Susan Maxwell - My dear friend. The first thing I must say is that it is an honor and privilege to know Susan. When you look up the name Susan, it is described as "lily"; "to be joyful, bright or cheerful".  To me, that definition for Susan Maxwell is only touching the tip of the iceberg.  Susan has a wisdom concerning the path of life that you can only get from your mother, yet Susan gives her wisdom to all that seek her out and have a thirst for knowledge.  I can't count how many times over the years that I have known Susan that she has been there with a well of refreshing and soothing knowledge.  We have all heard of the fabled "Spring of Life" that is to give eternal life; to me Susan is the genuine "Spring of Knowledge and Hope" because she so much advice and guidance to offer.  No matter how dark the skies may be, or how hopeless you may feel; after speaking with Susan, you gain a sense of peace and knowledge that things will be alright in time.  There have been a few times while I was at work and things just went absolutely wrong, I would call and speak with Susan.  Like the Rock of Gibraltar, Susan will be there to help you make it through the storm.  You can anchor yourself with the knowledge and kindness that comes from Susan.  I have never been a jealous person, but I am jealous of Susan's family members and children because they have known and loved Susan for many years.  To me, the world would be a much better place if every single person had a friend like Susan.  I am not a catholic person, but to me, Susan, my mother, my aunt and my sister are all Saints to me.  Thank you Susan for coming into my life, because I am a better person because I know and love you my dear friend.

Marianne Fisher - My dear friend. Have you ever met a kindred spirit?  Well I have, and her name is Marianne Fisher. Let me take you back several years to describe the beginning of our relationship.  I was a bratty little Management Analyst for the Fresno Compliance Services and had way too much "piss and vinegar" in me at the time.  I believed that whatever my Director wanted, I was going to give it to her and dare anyone to stand in the way of me getting what my Director wanted.  I was given the task to speak on the Director's behalf on various conference calls that Marianne was the HQ Analyst over.  Each time Marianne would speak of something that Fresno did not like, I was a pit bull on the issue and would just make things hard.  I know there was a time when Marianne would rather slap/kick/punch me for things I would do, and I can honestly say...I would deserve it.  After a few years of this going on, I had the unique opportunity to apply for a position to work with Susan and Marianne on a HQ Staff.  I applied and was selected for the job.  But I knew behind the scenes I had to bury the hatchet between Marianne and my evil twin (hehehe).  So within the first few days of being in the new position I wrote a letter to Marianne to explain my actions.  I wanted to make sure that she knew it was only business and that I looked forward to learning from her on the things that I needed to do as HQ Analyst.  Long story short....Marianne and I have become kindred spirits because we both have a side to us that many people provoke in coming out.  When we talk, we feel comfortable enough to let the more "colorful" adjectives come out to ensure we give an accurate evaluation of the subject or person.  When I explain Marianne to my other friends I always say "Marianne is my sister from another mother and father".  That is how I feel about the relationship that we have developed over the years.  She knows that she can call me and we can let the angry side of us go to each other.  And just like my real sisters, I love Marianne just as much.

Well that is the end of my homage to the 6 ladies that have had an amazing impact on my life.  In future stories they will be mentioned again, but I wanted to take this moment in time to speak directly about them.  As always ladies, I love you and you will forever be in my heart, mind and part of my soul.  Thank you for the honor of allowing me to be a part of your life and you in my life.

A "moving" experience...

The beginning of my education started in San Jose, California in Kindergarten. Ah the memory of the cookies, milk and other snacks that we would have for lunch each day. After a few weeks I was really starting to like being in California because I was able to play with kids and just have fun without a care in the world. But that was short lived because my aunt was going through some emotional troubles living in the big city. A decision had to be made and my aunt and uncle decided that we would move to a little town in which they owned a home already. My aunt tried to describe the little town to me, but I had no clue how to view the town in my mind. So after living in San Jose for a few months, we packed up everything and made the 5 hour journey to Central California.

Let me paint the picture for you....imagine the early 1970's when there wasn't smog and air pollution. We jumped in the moving truck and drove southeast from San Jose. Going through some of the largest mountains I have ever seen at that time in my life. It was late fall so the mountains around the central valley were golden brown with the wild mountain grass that grows throughout the mountains. To my young eyes, I was amazed to see such large shapes covered in rocks, trees and the golden grass. Until this point in my life, I only seen the red clay dirt of Oklahoma city and the typical dirt of San Jose. But to know that the ground around was full of other colors was just amazing to view.

It's rather early in the morning as we head through Pacheco Pass. As we head down the freeway, twisting and turning around these massive mountains, I view a large body of water and became very afraid because the road was going right next to this large body of water. It was a dam, and I did not know what it was for because I never seen one in Oklahoma. My aunt held my hand and explained the purpose and the need of a dam. After a few more minutes we were past the dam and heading down the final stretch of the mountain pass. The sun was coming up over the eastern horizon and small streams of sunlight were shining through the clouds into the valley. As far as the eye could see there was flat land with different color crops all over the place. The only thing at that time I could think of to resemble the view was an old patch quilt. Green, yellow, white, brown patches everywhere and I had no idea what they were. Again I asked my aunt what I was looking at, and she explained that the central valley has some of the largest farms for the entire state. I couldn't understand what a farm was because I was a "city boy" so I knew all of the food came from a store, not from the dirt...eww I don't want to eat anything anymore since it came from the dirt!

We continue to drive for a few more hours, but I was so tired from looking all over, I curled up in a ball and laid my head down on my aunt's lap and fell asleep. When I awake, we are parked in an area where I see other houses and kids outside playing because it is Saturday morning. I stretch and wake up and quickly jump out of the moving truck to see 3 older kids running down the street yelling "Granny". I figured these kids were crazy, because I would never run down the street yelling that, I would yell "You can't catch me", "You’re it" or "Ready or not here I come". They got closer and closer and would not stop running. Finally they ran right past me and to my aunt. She hugged and kissed them because they were her grandchildren. So again, I would have to meet new people and have a few more people that are relatives.

Growing up in Tulare was a rather interesting time. A nice small town with one major thing that you must experience each week. Take a guess??!!!?? Surrounding the city are several dairies with a lot of cows!!! On a rainy day, things would be good until the wind started to blow from any direction. Even now when I drive through Tulare on Highway 99, you must go through Tulare and be reminded of the cows all over the place. Other than that aromatic experience Tulare was a wonderful place to grow up.

So that was the beginning of my days in Tulare and the great educational system of the city of Tulare.

My future blogs are not going to go grade by grade, because that would just be too much for me to type, so I am going to hit the highlights.