SOMT: I Remember The Trapper Keeper

Blogger’s Note: SOMT stands for Sign Of My Times, an occasional blog sharing my thoughts how time changes life from when I was young to today.

I had two thoughts the other day. The first thought was going to Office Max in August 2009. There was a back to school coupon for a pack of gel pens. I wanted to try the gel pens to experience the hype. I entered the busy store filled with parents and their children from grade school to high school. The parents talked with the children discussing what to buy from the green sheets. I saw shopping carts and baskets filled with typical school supplies such as pencils, pens, makers, and paper. I also saw calculators, pocket dictionaries, and blank CDs.

I found the few remaining gel pens on the shelf. It took a long time finding because of the huge crowd and walking around to avoid hitting people. I looked at the long cashier line. It wasn’t worth the long wait for a pack of gel pens. I walked out of the store. I was happy walking out because I saw the families shopping together for school supplies.

The second thought was my elementary school years from kindergarten to third grade. My parents didn’t buy me school supplies. The school supplied pencils, pens, crayons, and paper for classroom use. My parents did buy school supplies for home use; although I rarely used them because my primary school teachers didn’t assign homework.

I was in fourth grade when my parents started buying school supplies for school. The first purchase was the Trapper Keeper. Most of my classmates carried the Trapper Keeper. My parents purchased my first backpack in sixth grade. One of my backpack straps broke. My dad fixed it by sewing fishing line to connect the strap and the plastic tab. Clever. I was never taught to wear the backpack with both straps. Everyone wore the backpack on one strap in junior high. I think students today wear their backpacks with both straps because the textbooks are heavy, less strain on their backs, and parents want to avoid buying new backpacks as long as possible.

Fourth grade was also the year my school stopped supplying basic school supplies to the students. Students had to provide their own school supplies to bring for classes. I stopped receiving school supplies provided by the school in fifth grade. I remember buying two pencils for $.25 from a small vending machine in seventh grade. It was an emergency because I forgot to bring pencils from home.

There is a cost attending public schools. I hear teachers solicit money from their students for art supplies. My sister paid a quarterly fee to ride the junior high school bus. Parents, it takes money to raise children. Remember to add school supplies as a high priority to support your children.

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