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Former Indians know they have
reached golden years
When they remember glory days at SHS better than
Yesterday, or where did I put my car keys? Bifocals?
Dare I mention teeth?
We
either walked to school in all kinds of weather
Or rode the city bus down Market or Broadway,
Sometimes transferring, often standing by the bus
Stop shivering in the cold, trying to look cool.
I drove down Cecil Avenue recently,
that broad street
That once led to fantasy land known as the Kentucky
State Fair. The old frame and brick bungalows seem
A little less inviting than I had remembered, some with
bars
On windows and steel security doors. Shawnee Park
Still looks green and pastoral, but I didn't see many
young
Folks enjoying the benefits of outdoor recreation.
Truman and Eisenhower were the big
guys when we sang
"Onward Shawnee" and sat in backless bleachers,
cheering
Brave pigskin warriors and admiring rosy-cheeked
Cheerleaders who jumped up and down and chanted
Clever slogans we still remember. Two bits, four bits,
Six bits, a dollar (which, we now lament, doesn't go
As far as it used to).
Most of us now live in the suburbs,
in newer mini-mansions
With two- or three-car garages. We drive SUV's to watch
Our grandchildren play football and soccer, and we cheer
Our girls' teams with the same fervor once reserved for
boys
Only. Many are now retired professionals -- teachers,
Healthcare workers, legal eagles, business persons -- or
skilled
Trades folk who earned a lot of wampum and spent
ourselves
Into credit card debt faster than greased lightning.
When we get together, as we shall
this coming year, to celebrate
Our survival despite global warming, corrupt politicians,
And a score or more of physical (and mental) ailments, we
Will rejoice in the shared glow of decades of memories
That began half a century ago, and the lyrics to old
songs
Will stir nostalgia and contentment for the way we were,
Cherry pink and apple blossoms white.
James Darrell Skaggs, SHS '58
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