School Days

"The Harris Barn"
Photo by Elaine Harris (c 1993)

As students settle back into a new school year, Oswayo bursts into beautiful fall colors.  Here's one of my favorite school stories, an excerpt from Dad's book, "Coming Full-Circle On Maple Street", pp 33-34.

Behind the Piano

Of all my teachers, my favorite one was Mrs. Mary Greenhill.  She was my seventh and eighth-grade teacher.  I think I learned more from her than any other teacher, although she kept me behind the piano for two years.

The upright piano sat diagonally in the corner of the schoolroom; my spot was there behind it.  She would let me come out for the class time when we had our lesson.  When finished, I would have to go back to the corner behind the piano.  The reason I had to sit there was that I could not keep from talking and disrupting the class. 

Even from behind the piano, I found ways to entertain my classmates.  When I was bored or getting restless, I would peek up over the top of the piano and make funny faces at the other students when the teacher wasn’t looking.  One day, I took the teacher’s turban winter hat that was hanging with her coat behind the piano and put it on my head before popping up.  It brought so many snickers from classmates that the teacher caught me in the act!

Despite all the classroom problems I gave her and the discipline she dealt out, I always felt she liked me anyway.

--Darell