Seventh Grade

 

I started seventh grade that fall at John Q. Adams Middle School, which was located about four blocks from my house. My two older sib- lings, Stephanie and Kenny, had gone there before me, and I was ready for a change in environment. It also was a chance to meet a whole new bunch of friends. From the start, sitting still in class and simply listening to the teachers was extremely hard for me. My attention continued to be everywhere else but in the classroom. While I was barely passing with a C- test score level, I thoroughly enjoyed and immersed myself into sports and extracurricular activities. 

I grew a little more over the summer and finally hit 5 feet, and barely weighed 78 lbs, too small to play on the school football team, but good enough to play quarterback on the Girard Gym team for my weight class. I also was good enough to play on the seventh grade school basketball team coached by Al Hickey. It was a good thing I could dribble, pass and shoot long shots, because I couldn’t actually remember any of the plays. Coach Hickey was always yelling at me. But I was a terror on defense, and extremely competitive, so I did what I could to contribute to the team and to win a lot of games.

© 2022 Jeffrey Pipes Guice

My Wonder Years: A Book