Dear Diary,

Remember how as a child, you couldn’t wait to be an adult? Then you became one and you wondered why? Most of us think that childhood was better because it was filled with fun and fewer cares. However, I often feel that childhood was better because we were basically smarter than adults.

I was in sixth grade when our elementary school officials decided to remodel the school. Unfortunately there wasn’t enough money to redo the entire school, so they decided to remodel one grade at a time. We sixth graders felt that our grade should be redone as a sort of reward or tribute for our last year at the school. Then the remodelling could proceed backwards through each preceding grade. Or they could start with the kindergarten classes and work their way forward. But no, the brilliant plan was to start with the fifth grade. Now why would anybody begin in the middle? Isn’t starting at one end usually a better idea? (Actually I think that the fifth grade was chosen because it was across from the office and next to the front door, thereby making it easier to show off the improvements to any visitors. I don’t know how many visitors the school received that year, but doesn’t that sound just like lovely adult logic?)

We, of course, were angry and the fifth graders were overjoyed. We were sore losers and they were poor winners. This episode was the beginning of a feud between our two classes. One that was to last until our high school graduation. Well, doesn’t every school need an un-official feud?

Anyway we complained to the principal. We kept asking why our grade wasn’t chosen to be the first. We never did get an answer, but later that year we did get the ultimate insult--next year the sixth grade would be remodeled! We were livid! Now they would do the sixth grade? Our response was, “Forget it, do the fourth grade.” And would you believe that the principal acted surprised that we weren’t happy? He kept saying, “Well you said that you wanted the sixth grade remodeled.” He just couldn’t understand why we were upset. (Obviously a person of very high intelligence.) Naturally, we wanted the goodies and we definitely didn’t want our nemesis behind us to benefit two years in a row--especially from our efforts. Since the school wanted to impress visitors, why not remodel the first grade classes since they were on the other side of the entrance. That way pretty classes would be on either side of the the front door.

But no, the so-called adult logic prevailed and the sixth grade was redone during the summer. The class behind us was sooooo happy as they flashed their little “cat that ate the canary” smiles. They gloated, we fumed; and throughout the entire incident, the principal continued to act confused. Yes, as an adult I now know that the act was a ploy, but we children kept asking ourselves, "Why do intelligent people grow up to become adults?"