February 14, 2013

School Valentines, 1967



One Valentine’s Day many (cough) years ago, my mother gave me a precious gift: a new scrapbook with purple and gray construction paper pages, perfect for saving my most treasured keepsakes and recording my innermost thoughts. You can tell right off the bat I was destined to become a genealogist, because the first thing I did was identify myself and record the date.


Then I proceeded to recap the big Valentine’s Day party at school. I taped in a napkin and a few valentines to commemorate the event. Even at this tender age, I was all about original sources.

If you look closely, you’ll see that the page is filled with keen observations and eloquent writing. Where else can you find absorbing stories like this:
            "Story
             At school I got this card. I read it. I liked it."


Perhaps I was practicing for the day I might become a blogger, because I left a comment on each valentine. For this one, I noted:
            "See the Fox. He loves me!"


In true writer’s fashion, I saved my biggest story to the end. The name of the classmate who gave me this is long forgotten, but his or her gift lives on. Enthusiastically, I wrote:
            "A little bear. Look at his tricks. And oh! Look at the ballon."


(Okay, can you tell I learned to read with Dick and Jane?)

What I remember best is the thrill of opening my school valentine “mailbox”—in the early grades, a paper lunch bag decorated with crayons—and finding all the little cards inside. Each sealed white envelope waiting to be opened and its treasure revealed. Oh, and I remember walking around the desks in the room, carefully putting my valentines into my classmate’s bags. I gave one to each person, because it wouldn’t be polite not to. But I had secretly picked out my favorites from the assortment for my best friends, and written their names carefully on the envelopes. Certainly they would know just how special they were to me!

What memories do school valentines bring back for you?
--Shelley

10 comments:

  1. Wow Shelly! Great trip down memory lane for Valentine's Day. It brought back many memories of the excitement of giving out and receiving cards and the fun of the the day in elementary school. I can remember even hand making cards for some of my more ardent crushes. What fun to have such examples in a scrapbook with your thoughts at the time!

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    1. Thanks, Bret, glad you enjoyed it! I know just what you mean about the excitement. That's sweet that you made some of your cards by hand. Wouldn't you love to see one of them today?

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  2. I love that like a true genealogist, you kept that scrapbook all these years. What a delightful treasure. Wouldn't it be fun if one of those classmates saw your post now?

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    1. That would be fun, Linda. And I guess it might actually be possible!

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  3. Yep, you were definitely a genealogist-in-training! What a fun post! And it's great that you've kept this scrapbook from your childhood.

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    1. I admit I'm really getting a kick out of looking through this scrapbook, Jana. Lots of memories, and such fun to see things from my little girl perspective. Glad to know you enjoyed it!

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  4. Oh, these cards are delightful! Thank you! I even remember that exact Tweety Pie card! We had the lunch bags decorated with crayons, too, and I remember how much I longed to get a "really good" valentine from certain special people -- and then whatever valentine I got, I'd scrutinize it to see whether it was "really, really" good, so I'd know whether they liked me as much as I liked them. Yes, I learned to read with Dick and Jane, too. Obviously I wasn't a genealogist yet, because all my old cards have disappeared. I now keep old cards from my grown-up children, though. Your post really takes me back, Shelley!

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    1. What a hoot that you remember that exact same card, Mariann! Sounds like we shared a lot of the same experiences. I remember evaluating each card, too. Valentine's Day was a big deal, wasn't it? Thanks for sharing your memories!

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  5. Shelley, I just wanted to let you know that your blog post is listed in today’s Fab Finds post at http://janasgenealogyandfamilyhistory.blogspot.com/2013/02/follow-fridayfab-finds-for-february-15.html

    Have a great weekend!

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