Please learn the life of Annie Easley.

Elementary school is a place where you first get to develop your social skills. Separation from your family under the guidance of your teachers forces you to find and/or accept your identity. I was fortunate to have a great social experience with school overall but it did start off with some challenges.

Like most kids I went to school because I had to with no particular desire to make friends or to be a good student, following the crowd like most adolescents. Thankfully, I had great teachers who I’d like to focus on during my tenure in elementary school. I made a lot of great friends who became friends for life. Far too many to mention here, but i’m grateful for the experiences that we’ve shared.

Following is a list of my favorite teachers who taught me lessons for life. And some who provided a lot of laughs along the way.

Thanks to Ms. Freeland who showed genuine interest in all of her students and taught us the importance of learning.

This next teacher changed my life literally. Her name was Miss Thompson, the quintessential “Big Mama” with all of the “ingredients”. Plus sized body, full sized mouth and a big bodacious attitude accompanied by a yardstick that was constantly in her hand just in case you forgot who she was.

Third grade, 1st day of school. 8:30 in the morning. I’m sitting at my assigned desk wearing a yellow number fifty five football jersey. I hear Miss Thompson yelling across the room, “Boy in the yellow sweater!  Boy in the yellow sweater! Boy in the yellow sweater. Do you hear me talking to you?” I’m nonchalantly looking around the room at the new students. Next thing I know, WHACK! The yardstick came crashing down across my desk. Miss Thompson says, “BOY!!! Didn’t you hear me talking to you?” Shocked, I replied, “You said boy in the yellow “sweater”. I have on a yellow “football jersey”……Trying not to laugh, she did manage a very brief smile (one of the very few that I would see for the rest of the school year) after realizing my sincerity. Then she stated emphatically, “CLOSE THAT WINDOW BEHIND YOU AND PAY ATTENTION THE NEXT TIME I CALL YOU.  WHAT’S YOUR NAME?  I said uh, uh and could not state my name quickly enough. So Ms. Thompson turned around in a huff, sat at her desk authoritatively and called my name. I replied, “Here”. The whole class erupted in laughter. I was friends with everybody from that point on.

Ms. Thompson was a tough no nonsense teacher from the old school. She taught during segregation, which meant she had little patience for black students who didn’t have discipline, respect and who did not pay strict attention. And I happened to be one of those black students. This was the era of Corporal Punishment and Miss Thompson had no problem being the corporal dishing out punishment as she saw fit. Many of my days were filled with laughter at the expense of my classmates who unfortunately found themselves at the wrong end of Miss Thompson’s yardstick. Being disobedient would put your entire body in harm’s way. Hands, heads, arms, backs, legs. I saw that yardstick swinging through the air way more than I would have liked. Fortunately, I was never the target of her wrath!

You see through all of her “tough” exterior and her “mean” demeanor Miss Thompson was really about love. She loved seeing her students excel in school. She loved seeing her students be their best. She loved seeing young girls in the class who were dressed respectfully and kept themselves looking nice. She always commented on the young boys who were dressed neat and encouraged us to do so. She praised us and rewarded us for doing good work just as much as she admonished us for not.

I became the de facto teacher’s pet probably based on my initial introduction to Miss Thompson on that first day. My classmates accused me of getting special privileges. I tried to deny it, but it was in fact true. One day all of boys were in trouble for something which I can no longer recall. She had all of us line up and started whacking one by one. As she approached me she hesitated briefly then skipped over to the next person. As they started to complain she went back for a second strike on them. I remained dead silent as the tears from my heavily suppressed laughter poured down my stoic, motionless face. That didn’t make me any friends.  The fellas didn’t talk to me for two days after that. There was a lesson in this for me.

Miss Thompson made me realize my ability to learn. When she yelled at me or gave me extra work or gave me tougher assignments I never cried or complained. She was the first teacher to tell me that I was a good student and she made a point to let my mother and father know how I conducted myself in class. I was given extra math and reading assignments.  She made me feel appreciated for being a good student which boosted my confidence and comfort around my peers as at that time I was just an average little overweight kid from the ‘hood.

As I became older I realized that Ms. Thompson pushed me forward by not limiting my imagination. She piqued my interest in the three “R’s”: Reading, ‘Riting and ‘Rithmetic. I always loved and respected her for that.

Some years later I upon hearing that her husband passed away I called to offer condolences. She did not remember me by voice so requested that I visit in person. Upon opening the door she instantly recalled who I was and hugged me like any “Big Mama” would.

R.I.P. Ms. Thompson

Finally had some time to create music. Check out audio of my new track “Stream Of Conscience”. Guitar and vocals to be added soon.

Great time hearing some live music presented by my friend Daryl and his band.

Aw man sunshine girl! Whoa man! I met Sunshine Girl when I was five years old. My family had recently returned back to Annapolis from Baltimore. The community we moved to was called “20”. This is where I met her.

Sunshine Girl did not live in “20”. She came to visit relatives there usually in the summer. I saw her for the first time either during the summer after kindergarten or the summer after first grade. She was the prettiest human being I’d ever seen in my life. Big pretty brown eyes that twinkled when she blinked. Real eyelashes that would put these modern fake ones to shame and she had a smile that was brighter than the sun. Hence the name. Her skin was a pretty caramel color that was even prettier when it was tan. She was the first girl that made me recognize “a girl” and I sat up and took notice. At five years of age I did not know what a kiss was but I certainly knew that I wanted to kiss her…..

The amazing thing was Sunshine Girl would actually talk to me and play with me. We would run through the community and to the playground and between buildings, all innocent fun that five and six year old kids will have. She was older than me but I didn’t know that at the time. Her older cousins and two older brothers made sure I kept a safe distance. After the second grade I moved from “20” to my new community Bywater and didn’t see Sunshine Girl for a few years.

Lo and behold one day at my new community me and a couple of friends were hanging outside my house just having fun. There was a girl who lived across the street and down a little bit who was popular with all the other girls. This day a group of girls came over to hang with her. I could not believe my eyes when I saw that one of the girls with Sunshine Girl.

Sunshine Girl had the talent and beauty to be a star. She could have done tv commercials, movies, videos anything. Even though she probably only stood about 5 foot 3 and maybe weighed about a 110 pounds she had a big smile, a big laugh and even bigger personality. She knew how to have fun and to create fun. Wherever she was there was a party going on and I mean that in the truest sense. No building, no place, no space could contain her energy. School could not do her any justice because she had more to teach than to learn. She was a natural actress. There were some people who may have been put off by her combination of beauty and energy but not me. I was fortunate to know her and know how kind hearted she was and how loyal she was, to a fault sometimes.

All through school and into early adulthood I would see her occasionally as we would run into each other from time to time. We never dated but we also had a respectful different kind of friendship. We would  occasionally have conversations about who I was dating and I would always ask her family members how she was doing. At this point I haven’t seen her in twenty years or so but she left an indelible mark on me nonetheless.

Sunshine girl taught me a valuable lesson: be yourself, no matter what. No apologies no pretense. She also set a standard for me in the sense that I was  comfortable talking to attractive women early in my life. I never judged people based on initial appearance.

And you know what? For me, she doesn’t have to be anybody else. She is Sunshine Girl.

I met Herb when I was four years old. His mother was my paternal aunt and we grew to be as close as brothers. I first encountered him upon visiting his house as he did not live in my community. He was the youngest of four siblings, which included two older brothers and one older sister. We were a match made for mischief.

My earliest memories of my friendship with Herb started when he lived in what we referred to as the Pink House. The exterior of the home was actually pink. Two of my older female cousins along with myself would visit occasionally throughout the year. That’s when our friendship began.

We really acknowledged our kinship when Herb’s family moved from the Pink House to the new house which became the Brown House. I was an unpolished city boy whose life was shaped by an urban upbringing. Herb was a rough around the edges country boy whose lifestyle was shaped by a suburban upbringing. Perfect!!!

All of the older cousins were recruited to help my aunt and uncle move to the new house. Myself, the younger cousin, was allowed to tag along. Upon arriving at the new house Herb and myself spent our time running around on the new front deck and out in the expansive of backyard. This was a fortelling of what was to come.

Herb and I started alternating summers at each other’s homes. My uncle had a farm which included horses, cattle, pigs and chickens. He had a barn that contained a bunch of cool motorcycles. He owned the guns and equipment that allowed him to make his own ammunition. Herb and I would go crabbing, fishing, camping, all outdoor activities that I had not experienced up to this point of my life. Herb raced motorcycles and my uncle would allow me to go along to the track to serve as the “assistant mechanic”. They taught me how to ride motorcycles. My aunt and uncle worked irregular schedules  which allowed herb and I to have a lot of time at home by ourselves. There were other friends around, but not like in my community……

Herb spent summers at my house, which included me and my two younger siblings. As a matter of fact Herb, Pete and myself became like the three amigos. See one of us you see all of us. The good times and troubles grew exponentially. I lived in a community of town homes. No fishing, no crabbing, no camping, but lots of people. Mainly, lots of girls. And Herb noticed. His community was somewhat isolated. He lived in a single family home surrounded by a few acres of land. His friends lived about a quarter of a mile away. In my community, all of my friends were literally right next door. The girls were all around across the street, up the street, down the street, next door, everywhere. He could barely contain himself. I didn’t blame him. We indulged ourselves accordingly……having more fun than should be allowed as teenagers.

I learned a lot of valuable lessons from Herb, some directly some indirectly. Herb was the first I saw who owned an electric guitar and an amplifier. I bought an electric base because we were supposed to start a band. After about a year, Herb turned his interest elsewhere (girls) and gave me the guitar and amp. He made playing music tangible for me. Somewhere in our mid teens, he gave me one of the most important lessons in my life. He said this: Don’t worry about stuff. If you can’t change it, it’s gonna happen anyway. If you can change it, then change it. I never forgot those words. I’ve had to apply it many times over the course of my life. Another thing herb taught me was toughness. He had to fight for his position in the family as he grew up with some tough older siblings. Even though he was privileged he had to grow up fast. I also learned that having a privileged life doesn’t mean that your life is complete.

There’s so much more. I could add to this story, but I’ll end by saying this. I am eternally grateful for the times that we get to spend together.

How do you begin a story that is almost sixty years in the making? You start at the beginning.

I met “Pete” at the sandbox on the playground. I was three years old. He was four. We lived in small community that consisted of what seemed to be only two streets. The area was rich in tradition as it sat on the banks of the Severn River with the United States Naval Academy directly across the main road. Both historic locations were within walking distance. Remnants of the once active AWB and WB&O Railroad that stretched from Annapolis to Elkridge ran adjacent to the community. Residents could walk to the banks of the Severn River to watch the annual aerial display of the Blue Angels for the Naval Academy graduation.

Pete and I became instant friends. We hung out just about every day. There were other kids in the community. There was a  kid named Herb about our age. We later had to refer to him as “White Herb” as another Herb (Black Herb) would emerge.

When Pete turned five he no longer was available to play as he headed off to school. I had another year to go. Pete liked school. He would come home and describe his day with enthusiasm as he met new friends from different communities. When the school year ended we all moved from the community as it was purchased by the Naval Academy.

Our families moved to different locations so for a couple of years we were out of touch. And then my mom moved to a community called Bywater. Pete’s famiky was already there. And suddenly we were old friends once again. We got into all sorts mischief. I mean…….phew! Boy, we knew how to have fun! 

You see, if you weren’t one of Pete’s close friends you could not have known the comedic talent he possessed. He was literally a damn clown in the best sense of the word. He did great voice imitations, crazy facial expressions and physical comedy that a boy his age should not have been capable of. Jim Carey had nothing on him! We laughed and acted silly all day long. So much so that our moms spent the majority of some days yelling “y’all stop acting so damn silly”. That made us laugh even more….

As we progressed through adolescence Pete became my big  brother. Most of what I learned through sports came from him. He introduced me to the sport of football, both professional and college. He loved football and did a great imitation of Hall of Fame Sports Reporter Howard Cosell. Even in elementary school he possessed vast knowledge of the history of the game. He could probably name every player on every team in the NFL at that time and could imitate their voices and body movements as well!

Pete could have easily been a comedy skit writer if not a performer himself. Really! He watched a lot of comics on TV at that time (Lucille Ball, Richard Pryor, Flip Wilson,Three Stooges) and knew all of their lines.

We were both music fans and I recall the time Pete told me that the bass line from Parliament Funkadelic’s “Flashlight” was from a keyboard. My brain could not comprehend and so I challenged him unsuccessfully. (This happened a lot…lol)  You see, Pete’s Uncle Dean played keyboards so he was exposed to the early technology. I met Dean in my teens and it changed my musical trajectory. Dean played a song that he had recorded. I noticed that the song had multiple voices that sounded like Dean. He explained that he used a “multitrack recorder”. I was astonished and hooked. My world shifted that day. Bought my own multitrack recorder a few months later.

As you can see I learned a lot from our friendship. Too much to even try to include in this post. Many of early interests were fortified through our growing up together. You know what? We are still friends today. Almost sixty years from the sandbox.

Man it’s wednesday. Now, today I’m going to try to finish up what I didn’t get done over the weekend. Got some straightening up to do in my garage, guess I’ll finish cutting my backyard and hopefully get a chance to at least listen to some music. Great weather today so I’m gonna try to get outside and start there early.

You know, these last few days got me thinking about something. I have these stories I want to share, but I’ve been putting them off for a few years now. I want to make sure that I write them in the correct way and that the stories represent the people involved properly. I’ve been fortunate to have good people become a part of my life and I just think that the way we became friends is somewhat noteworthy.

One of these stories is somewhat fascinating and you’ll understand once I write it. However, I didn’t want to write that story without presenting the stories that preceded it. A major challenge will be trying to condense these stories down into an acceptable length. These friendships developed decades apart but they’ve all managed to last my lifetime and I am grateful for that. Stay tuned and I hope you appreciate them.