Recommended Reading: The Edge Of the World

    Actually the full title of this book by Michael Pye is The Edge Of The World: How The North Sea Made Us Who We Are.  Not a quick read, this book of 328 pages of small print makes an interesting argument.  Essentially Pye argues that between 700 and 1700 CE, what we usually call the Dark Ages and the Middle Ages, in northern Europe many features of our common life were being developed. He contends that those developments are are commonly over looked.
    Those feature are things like written law, monetary systems. capitalism, fashion, overseeing nature, the power of traders, and the significance of major cities.  Progress did not end with the fall of Rome only to finally restart with the Renaissance.  These developments owed much to the proximity of the North Sea.
   He does not minimize what was occurring in southern Europe.  His argument is, that the developments of northern Europe during that millennium need to be understood for a complete historical record.
  The book reminds me a bit of another book; How The Irish Saved Civilization which treats of the contribution made by Irish monks and others in keeping learning alive during the time about which Pye writes.
   If you choose to read The Edge...and I do recommend it, I'd suggest  studying the introduction.  In it Pye does a very good job establishing the framework for the book.  His style is indirect so knowing his thesis is very important.  If I were to critique one aspect of his writing it would be that indirectness.  I found myself often wishing he'd just clearly say something rather than letting inference carry the message.  However, this is one book I'd like to re-read...maybe someday?

In the School Yard, 1943-1952 (part I)

     Sunshine School, District #21, (I think that's the correct #?) lay on the next section north east of our farm...a mile from our house and 'uphill both ways' of course. It was the site of my first eight years of school and was five when I first walked that mile.  Typically, there were about twelve students in the eight grades with one teacher.
     We considered ourselves fortunate because there was a hill on the school grounds which was steep enough to use to slide our snow sleds.  The track down the hill would take a little grooming and then we'd get a good ride on our "Flyer" or which ever model of sled we had.  Running as fast we could we'd slam belly down on the sled at the top of the hill and get a good ride to the bottom.
     Five structures graced the grounds when I began school.  There were outhouses (no running water in the school) for girls and boys, a coal shed, horse barn and the school house.  When I was in the 5th grade an oil burned replaced the coal stove so the room would still be warm in the morning...the building had no insulation...and the coal shed was used for storage.
     When students no longer rode horseback to school, student's fathers gathered one day and turned the barn into a backstop for our baseball games.  The level ground at the base of the hill was large enough for a baseball field.  However, the right field was not very deep and a ball hit that direction could end up in the road ditch.  Balls lost in the tall grass had to be recovered to continue the game because we had only one ball.  If a few minutes of searching did not recover the ball, a boy would roll in the grass until he felt a bump, i.e., the lost ball.
     The special nature of our school grounds was further enhanced by a double row of fir trees on three sides; east, north and west with  partial rows on the south.  With five structures and the trees Hide And Go Seek was a favorite game because of all the good hiding places.
     There were two permanent pieces of playground equipment.  A rather high teeter totter with long planks that lifted one high in the air.  Older boys would use it as a challenge ride for daring bicycle stunts.  A wheel on a fifteen foot high steel post provided an unusual swing.  Chains draped from the wheel and had wooden hand holds attached at various heights.  Students would hold on, run rapidly and lift their feet for circular ride.

(To be continued.)

Note the trees...I'm wearing bib overalls :)

Remembering my brother, Richard, on his birthday.

    Four years older than I, Richard was such a huge presence in my growing up.  I'm now 16 years older than he was when he died.  In my imagination I always saw the three of us, Richard, David and I growing old together.  Now it is almost 20 years since he died.
   The enclosure is copied from the Volga Tribune.

# 2 David, # 7 Me and #11 Richard in elementary school.