A old photograph, a new prospective

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The other day I was on Facebook when to my utter shock my 6th grade graduation picture from 1969 pops up. https://imageshack.com/i/idy3YywNj I am in the front row person furthest to the right. I have spent 45 years trying to forget about that time of my life because as seems to be true with many here that is prime bullying time in my life. At first I did not remember most of the people because it was 45 years ago but as the discussion got going the names and memories came flooding back, who were my bullies, were who was nice to me who I had a crush on (2nd girl on the left middle row.) I was tempted to delete the picture and run from it again but felt I finally needed to finally face up to it and truly move past it. I thought about going off on them, it was tempting, but realized these people are not the 11 and 12 year olds in the picture but 56 and 57 years old probably grandparents now. I did make a reference to something they used to say to me and wrote I won't freak out now because I outgrew it (LOL). If anybody picked up on the reference they did not say anything. But the reference was really for my benefit not theirs.

Because I was picked on I have always thought I was a really nerdy looking kid. But the picture showed I was I really handsome boy, no nerdiness at all. That is shocking and a revelation to me. Besides being short my autistic traits must have been even a bigger factor in why I got bullied then I thought.

Two possible aspie-autistic things I noticed is that I did clasp my hands harder then the other kids. And I was the only boy with a suit jacket without a carnation. Was the lack of carnation due to exclusion, or because I thought it was too girly, or something else. A question I am most probably never going to find an answer to

I am glad this picture popped up after my diagnosis and not before. Instead of providing further explanation and another opportunity to face the past and forgive myself, it would have been depressing reminder.

Off-Topic. Two others things in the picture stood out.
The picture was taken in 1969 the year of Woodstock and the moon landing but nobody looked remotely "hippie". The girl back row far right had a hair style more representative of 1963 then 1969. My neighborhood was slow to catch on. By the 70's the the long hair and drugs were firmly in place.
A male elementary school teacher is something you do not see often today but was common then.

I agree; you were a really handsome boy. I never would have guessed you would have been a target for bullying. There is an interesting episode of the "Monk" television series (the 14th episode of season 7) where Mr. Monk confronts his school bully at about age 50. The title of the episode is "Mr. Monk and the Bully".

Yep....things were pretty formal then. If you looked "hippie" in 1969, you were probably bullied. You had to wear dress slacks (or dresses) to school then--and button-down shirts and blouses. You had to wear a tie to "assembly."

When I was in sixth grade, I had hair like Oliver on the Brady Bunch. I looked about 2 years younger than my age. I was seated, too.

Assembly, oh gosh. And tights and hair ribbons for girls, for sure. No slacks and *definitely* no jeans.

I am about 10 years younger than you and had to look the word "dungarees" up in the dictionary when I was in the 6th grade and read it in a book. Tempus fugit, eh?

We used "dungarees" as well, in conjunction with "jeans."

"Jeans" became the exclusive term for denim things in the late 70s.

The designer jeans fad was so obnoxious
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YK2VZgJ4AoM[/youtube]
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[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qAZP9i6MvSw[/youtube]

You were the handsomest boy, maybe that's why you were singled out. You don't have a carnation but you are also the only one with a bow tie. Perhaps you had a fashion sense and turned down the proffered carnation as not your style.