1975

As I was driving to church today (for the first time; see above), I turned to a local "rock 'n' roll oldies" station, just as the DJ was introducing the morning's program. Typically, she focuses on the music that was popular for a given year, and yesterday she had chosen 1975. "I remember 1975," she enthused. "It was a very good year."

So I got to thinking. I can remember 1975, too. I was mostly 13 that year; turned 14 in August, just in time to start high school. I learned a lot, that year...

• I learned that being prepared carries a different connotation for adult women, and one of the reasons we often carry purses.
• I learned the weight of having to be responsible.
• I learned the pain of having someone I loved and trusted implicitly, betray that trust.
• I learned the joy of having an enemy become a lifelong friend.
• I learned there were some things my parents didn't need to know.

It was not, in many ways, an easy year; good mixed with bad, and sometimes hard to separate one from another. Looking back, I guess I realize now that, for many complicated reasons, it was the year I grew up.