November 22nd has never been the same since they killed JFK

[RobinA]

25. Age 5

in 1st grade. I remember us being dismissed early without explanation, but this may not actually be true (the early part, not the lack of explanation). At any rate, I went out to where the school buses were to get on the bus and the flag was at half mast (didn't know that term at the time), which I had never seen. I asked a teacher why the flag was down and she said that it meant somebody important had died. I asked her who died and she said to ask my parents. Being a bundle of existential anxiety on a good day and an egocentric 5 year old, I thought about who was important that my parents would know and I decided that a grandparent had died. After all, they were OLD (probably in their upper '50's at the time). This upset me greatly, but on the bus I soon learned that it was the President. It seemed like this was a big deal, but at 5 I had no real context to really feel that way myself. I was ultimately more worried about Caroline and John-John who were mine and my sisters ages and whose father had died, in my mind the worst thing that could possibly happen to a 5 year old.