Steve Merlo: Here's to the old way of education
| Thursday, May 07 2009 06:51 PM
Last Updated Thursday, May 07 2009 06:51 PM
I think I finally understand what people mean when they say "life's just too short."
The 20th century went by like a blur, and thinking back to a much more fun and easier time in my life, the sixties roll through my mind like a parade of good times.
Back then, Jack Webb changed names to protect the innocent. Ed Sullivan showcased the Beatles and Elvis, and the Lone Ranger continued to "silver bullet" the bad guys along with his faithful sidekick, Tonto. Hoola Hoops were in, and our Timex watches just kept on ticking after their licking.
Kids were naive then, compared to today's youth, and for a kid growing up in a small town out in the middle of nowhere, my naivete knew no bounds. For most of us that called Buttonwillow home during that period, we knew little of racism, casual sex, burning draft cards or the space race until the city kids began moving in and caused us to unfortunately and regretfully learn about these things. We learned about a place called Vietnam, only because 41-years ago my best friend, Larry Johnson, died there.
Even so, and besides the great public school education we were given, we managed to create our own educational system out there, and it still serves us.
We eventually did make our way into the modern society, learning what we had to do to cohabitate with the rest of humanity, and fortunately, that process included a profound education in natural outdoor lore. Larry and I shared hundreds of adventures over the few short years we knew each other, hunting, fishing and just exploring the surrounding hills, desert and farmlands. We searched for Native American artifacts strewn along the ridges where firepots could still be seen, learning about their one time owners through the Encyclopedia Britannica and becoming amateur archeologists along the way. We would find unusual stones and studied how and when they got there, and became geologists. We collected all sorts of snakes and lizards, studying them and becoming herpetologists.
We fished wherever we could, learning things that made fish tick. Did you know the black crappie has seven spines along its dorsal fin, while the white crappie has more? That the lowly carp is actually very good eating and is considered a true minnow, no matter his size? That catfish had tastebuds not only on their barbels but their bodies too? That temperature and environment made fish locate and feed. Gee, I guess that made us ichtheologists, didn't it?
We found that a skinned cottontail and a jackrabbit had different shaped ribs, so we could easily tell them apart with or without their fur coats. We discovered many forms of bird nests, and could tell what they were merely by the color of their eggs. We studied organisms under a cheap microscope and dissected frogs, toads and crayfish. I guess that made us biologists, or even game wardens, right?
The important thing here, is that I wouldn't trade that education for the ones our kids are getting today for a million bucks. Show a kid a picture of a fawn and he will not know what it is, other than maybe a deer. They cannot tell a trout from a salmon, a rabbit from a jack, a pigeon from a crow. They don't know the difference between a BB-gun and a shotgun, only that any gun has to be the dreaded assault rifle they've been brainwashed to avoid. Most have never pulled a fish from the water with a fishing pole and very few have ever enjoyed Mother Nature at her finest on a camping trip. Cackleberries must grow on bushes, too, because yuk, how can so many come out of a single chicken?
Many think food is made in the back of a supermarket, that meat grows somewhere else other than on a steer or pig. Few have ever marveled at a gurgling stream, a pine forest, a flushing pheasant or a decoying duck.
But ask one to assist you with a computer, use a cell phone, set up an Xbox, or whatever they're called, and they'll know how to do it. Ask them about prophylactics, any so-called reality show, drugs, sex education, phone-texting pictures and they'll know the score.
Now, I'm not saying that progress isn't a good thing; It is. But somewhere along the line, we have to get a decent mix of real life along with the electronics, YouTube and television. Without that mix, we're simply not living, but merely existing.
These are Steve Merlo's opinions, and not necessarily The Californian's. His column appears every Friday. Write him at merloworms@bak.rr.com.
