50 years isn't as long as you may think
Posted: Saturday, August 15, 2015 4:00 am
FIFTY YEARS is a long time, right? Don’t count on it.
I say that after attending the Hickory High Class of 1965 reunion festivities the last two nights. For my classmates and me, those 50 years went by awfully quickly. (Awfully being a key word here.)
It seems like only yesterday that we were walking the halls of the “new” Hickory High School in Hickory Township. Then again it seems like only yesterday, because at my age I can’t remember a lot of the years in between.
But that is a lesson that I gladly pass on to every young person. Enjoy everything about your life, because it will fly by quickly.
That little boy or girl you are teaching to ride a bike will soon be headed off to college. And then, snap your fingers and you’ll soon be teaching your grandkids how to ride a bike.
And 50 years later you’ll be trying to remember how to ride a bike. (Note to self: Don’t ever try that again.)
The class of 2015 at every local school is headed out into the world to make a name for itself, just as we did at Hickory 50 years ago. Those kids are headed out to seek their bright futures.
But a word of advice: That future will be on you quickly. And that future will soon be your past.
Like us, in 50 years they will be saying how much things have changed since their graduation days. And they do.
But what is the difference today compared to 1965? Long-time Greenville teacher Paul Miller, a 1965 graduate of Commodore Perry, compiled some interesting facts about that year for his reunion and shared them with me:
• A gallon of gas cost 31 cents. While we lament how much it has gone up, that 31 cents actually amounts to $2.30 in 2015 dollars.
• A loaf of bread cost 21 cents. But that is about $1.56 in today’s figures, so we actually aren’t doing too badly if you buy the cheaper bread. Then again, I don’t remember having whole grain bread back in those days.
• The average income was $6,450, or $47,854 today. The average salary in Mercer County doesn’t come near that current value; then again many higher-paying industries are no longer here.
• On Aug. 6 that year, President Lyndon B. Johnson signed the Voting Rights Act into law. A couple of months earlier, Vivian Malone became the first black person to graduate from the University of Alabama.
• The Vietnam War was a serious bone of contention. On Nov. 13, the anti-war protest movement saw 35,000 people march on Washington, D.C., demanding an end to the war. The next day the United States sent 90,000 more troops to Vietnam.
• While today’s youngsters have no idea what a “record player” is, we used to spin our discs. The No. 1 song on the charts this weekend in ’65 was “I Got You Babe” by Sonny and Cher.
Fifty years from now, the classes of 2015 may be looking back the same way at their past at their reunions. Hopefully, I’ll be able to help them with some of the details. After all, I’ll only be 117 years old.
LYNN SATERNOW of The Herald writes this column each week for The Opinion Page. He can be reached at lsaternow@sharonherald.com.
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