Astronomy Club
I enjoy my life. I enjoy the ups and downs that make life what it is. I enjoy life because I've figured a lot of it out. I know that when I don't expect a lot, I'm much less disappointed. I figured that one out when I was about nine years old.
As a nine year old boy, I was chubby, relatively friendless and generally disrespected by the majority of my peers. But on a warm spring day in 1991 things looked like they were about to change. That morning, my teacher pulled me out into the hall to talk to me. She told me that I had been selected to be a part of a special program and I had to meet the gym teacher at two o'clock that afternoon.
I was excited beyond words. I couldn't keep my focus that day, even more so than usual. I had been selected to be a part of a special group. Finally, I was part of something. I was going to be a part of something larger than myself. I wasn't part of any sports team, academic team, or any other club. But FINALLY I was going to have something to identify with. I was going to find my place, my slot, in the mixed up world that was the fourth grade social structure. Maybe this little club I was going to be a part of would carry on to middle school, then maybe high school. I could finally start carving my niche.
Two o'clock finally came and I made my way down to the gym. When I walked in, I looked around at the other students who had also been chosen to be a part of the special group. These were the people I would bond with, my future friends and comrades. As I began to identify the other students, I realized that most of them were kids that I already considered friends. They were the other chubby, relatively friendless and generally disrespected students that I hung out with during recess. What special club could we all be a part of? Finally, my question was answered. The teacher addressed the group by saying "Welcome, everyone to the 'S.U.N. Club'!"
Sun club? What? Are we tanning together? That had to be it. We were all going to do outdoor activities or something. Maybe something with science or astronomy. I was good at that. I was probably chosen to be a part of an astronomy club because of my solid earth science skills. That's it! Awesome! Sounds like fun. Let's get started!
"What's the 'Sun' Club?" one girl asked.
"S.U.N. stands for Shape Up Now! We're all going to get in shape!" The teacher said.
What? How was an astronomy club going to help us get in shape? Oh wait, it wasn't an astronomy club, it was a school-run fat camp. Awesome. That's the "special" group I was selected for? Being out of shape made me special? Had I known that overdosing on oreo's everyday after school in fourth grade would've made me "special", I'd have done it sooner. Regardless of what got me there, I was there, and when I figured out what was going on, I bailed.
I understood that the "S.U.N. Club" was the first of many heartbreaks and let downs that I would suffer in the future. So now, I was ready. The whole experience allowed me to better handle what lie ahead of me. Thanks to my experience at Hiram W. Dodd elementary, I was better prepared to deal with the whirling shit storm that life really is.