I was at a soccer game when another asked me this question. Do the high schools still do the whole " letterman " jacket thing ? It having been forty five years since I graduated and twenty years or more since my own boys did, I didn't have an answer. I do work with some high school children so I inquired. Turns out the answer I got was, no, not really. If they do it isn't a big deal. I heard that you can buy a jacket with a " C " on it for Caroline county. I wonder if that is the case everywhere else ? Has the iconic letterman jacket been relegated to a fashion choice ?
I never earned a letter, or a jacket, when I was in high school. I did not participate in any organized sport. The reason is not important but I now wish I had. I had close friends that earned those letters and I admired them. The letters and the friends. That it gave those students a sense of pride and accomplishment can not be denied. I wonder why that would be withheld in todays' schools ? Has that become prey to political correctness ? Is it letters for all ? Or has that gone by the wayside for some other reasons. I must say I was surprised to learn that. I have seen cheerleaders in the parades so I guess that is still acceptable. I would imagine that whole dynamic still exists. The pretty and popular as it where.
High school sure looks different through the filter of time. The whole social order of things makes me smile. All the little groups and sub groups. The scholars and the athletes. Then you have everyone else. I was in the " everyone " else category. My friends were in the athlete and scholar groups. I just seemed to drift in and out. In when it was a social aspect, out when the athletics or scholarly pursuits were being done. I was neither popular nor shunned, if that is the word. High school was a place I had to be. I enjoyed school although I admit enjoying the social aspect of it more than the scholarly pursuit of knowledge. I didn't " apply " myself as the teachers were wont to point out. Apparently some felt I had " potential. " I just didn't take the whole thing seriously. I found it easy enough to get passing grades without having to exert much effort. That lead me to be a bit lazy. Well, can't change the past now can we ? It was a different time and place back then. The pursuit of advanced degrees was not for the working class, which I perceived myself to be. It was not expected or even encouraged. A man that could " work " and provide for his family by the sweat of his brow was admired. Those making a living using their brains were not thought of in the same way. They were somehow different and not " real " men.
A letterman jacket was a source of pride. It would make up for, shall we say, a deficiency in the intellect department. Athletics was an avenue you could take to gain popularity and respect. Gaining letters for band and being on the honor roll also added to your " street cred " in high school. I'm sure all of this still exists on some level. I'm just not in that dynamic anymore and so can not evaluate the situation. Kids will be kids no matter the generation. Maybe it is tee shirts or sneakers that identify your grouping now, I don't know. I'm sure there is a way to tell.
I never earned a letter, or a jacket, when I was in high school. I did not participate in any organized sport. The reason is not important but I now wish I had. I had close friends that earned those letters and I admired them. The letters and the friends. That it gave those students a sense of pride and accomplishment can not be denied. I wonder why that would be withheld in todays' schools ? Has that become prey to political correctness ? Is it letters for all ? Or has that gone by the wayside for some other reasons. I must say I was surprised to learn that. I have seen cheerleaders in the parades so I guess that is still acceptable. I would imagine that whole dynamic still exists. The pretty and popular as it where.
High school sure looks different through the filter of time. The whole social order of things makes me smile. All the little groups and sub groups. The scholars and the athletes. Then you have everyone else. I was in the " everyone " else category. My friends were in the athlete and scholar groups. I just seemed to drift in and out. In when it was a social aspect, out when the athletics or scholarly pursuits were being done. I was neither popular nor shunned, if that is the word. High school was a place I had to be. I enjoyed school although I admit enjoying the social aspect of it more than the scholarly pursuit of knowledge. I didn't " apply " myself as the teachers were wont to point out. Apparently some felt I had " potential. " I just didn't take the whole thing seriously. I found it easy enough to get passing grades without having to exert much effort. That lead me to be a bit lazy. Well, can't change the past now can we ? It was a different time and place back then. The pursuit of advanced degrees was not for the working class, which I perceived myself to be. It was not expected or even encouraged. A man that could " work " and provide for his family by the sweat of his brow was admired. Those making a living using their brains were not thought of in the same way. They were somehow different and not " real " men.
A letterman jacket was a source of pride. It would make up for, shall we say, a deficiency in the intellect department. Athletics was an avenue you could take to gain popularity and respect. Gaining letters for band and being on the honor roll also added to your " street cred " in high school. I'm sure all of this still exists on some level. I'm just not in that dynamic anymore and so can not evaluate the situation. Kids will be kids no matter the generation. Maybe it is tee shirts or sneakers that identify your grouping now, I don't know. I'm sure there is a way to tell.
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| Fashion or the future ? My buddy Oliver |
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