OF THE JOY OF LIFE
We of the 50s and 60s who were happy, we who played with
friends, we who discovered life, we who learned about life
before the age of 18.
We who have not forgotten it.
“We” it is “I”, one of many.
This is our story.
We who have been all these things and much more.
We who had not FukFok, Fakebook, Istantfool, Shitter/X, Telecrap, WhatsThefuck.
Of course, it wasn't always a bed of roses. We had our own problems, sometimes serious ones.
Many could not afford holidays, ski, play tennis, travel, go to theatre and much more.
We made mistakes, we made many mistakes, but we never blamed others, fashions, external influences.
We knew that it was exclusively our fault, we learned from our mistakes, and we matured by learning the lesson.
If you belong to this generation, send this post to your friends and
acquaintances of your generation.
But also to younger people so they know how rewarding our life was …
Why did I write this post?
Not to express my memories and emotions, but to convey how a child
first, and a boy after, can live happily and study without artificial
intelligence nonsense, social media, virtual friends, aping fashions,
ignoring the problems of politics and society.
Simply live happily, sharing, hanging out, playing and studying with
our classmates.
So much has changed since the 50s and 60s.
The lives of children and youngsters today are very different from ours.
But has it really changed for the better?
What have children and youngsters that is truly important, and we had not?
Why can't they live and study the way we did?
They certainly have teaching tools that we had not, that offer new possibilities, but that are often used as shortcuts.
I deal with it in the last part of this paper.
Sandie Shaw - Those Were the Days 1968
Those were the days my friend
We thought they'd never end
We'd sing and dance forever and a day
We'd live the life we choose
We'd fight and never lose
For we were young and sure to have our way.
And you? Write your experiences in the comments.
P.S. You can find many sites which tell how we were in the 50’s and 60’s. Visit them, and be ready for surprises.
We of the 50s and 60s who were happy, we who played with
friends, we who discovered life, we who learned about life
before the age of 18.
We who have not forgotten it.
“We” it is “I”, one of many.
This is our story.
We who have been all these things and much more.
We who had not FukFok, Fakebook, Istantfool, Shitter/X, Telecrap, WhatsThefuck.
Of course, it wasn't always a bed of roses. We had our own problems, sometimes serious ones.
Many could not afford holidays, ski, play tennis, travel, go to theatre and much more.
We made mistakes, we made many mistakes, but we never blamed others, fashions, external influences.
We knew that it was exclusively our fault, we learned from our mistakes, and we matured by learning the lesson.
If you belong to this generation, send this post to your friends and
acquaintances of your generation.
But also to younger people so they know how rewarding our life was …
Why did I write this post?
Not to express my memories and emotions, but to convey how a child
first, and a boy after, can live happily and study without artificial
intelligence nonsense, social media, virtual friends, aping fashions,
ignoring the problems of politics and society.
Simply live happily, sharing, hanging out, playing and studying with
our classmates.
So much has changed since the 50s and 60s.
The lives of children and youngsters today are very different from ours.
But has it really changed for the better?
What have children and youngsters that is truly important, and we had not?
Why can't they live and study the way we did?
They certainly have teaching tools that we had not, that offer new possibilities, but that are often used as shortcuts.
I deal with it in the last part of this paper.
Sandie Shaw - Those Were the Days 1968
Those were the days my friend
We thought they'd never end
We'd sing and dance forever and a day
We'd live the life we choose
We'd fight and never lose
For we were young and sure to have our way.
And you? Write your experiences in the comments.
P.S. You can find many sites which tell how we were in the 50’s and 60’s. Visit them, and be ready for surprises.
WE WHO IN ELEMENTARY SCHOOL IN THE 1950S
We who … our mothers didn't see us with the echography.
We who … studied the Italian language, not Itagliazzian.
We who … spoke Italian correctly even when we played.
We who … didn't make any distinction between rich children and poor children.
We who … all played together.
We who … had a single teacher, almost always a female teacher, who taught all the subjects.
We who … went to school dressed in uniform: the boys with a black blouse and the girls with a white or black apron.
We who … at school we all wore a white collar with a bow.
We who … at school even the teachers wore a black apron.
We who … aspired to the good cockades.
We who … had to write with our right hand, even if we were left-handed, because the left was the devil's hand.
We who … the teacher had a two-colour pencil, blue for minor mistakes, and red for serious mistakes.
We who … sharpened the pencil till we could no longer hold it.
We who … had notebooks with a black cover and red edges on the sheets.
We who … had a practise notebook and a fine notebook; the teacher took them both away to see if we had copied the others' homework.
We who … had a fine notebook with squares, and a lined one with different lines spacing according to the grade.
We who … when the notebook was full we used the cover to cut out carnival masks.
We who … school started on October 1st, but on the 4th of the same month there was already a day off because it was St. Francis, the patron saint of Italy.
We who … went to school alone, and came back alone,
We who … on the first day of school, parents only accompanied only those who were starting the first grade.
We who … on the first day of school already knew that the teacher made us write “little thoughts” about how we spent the holidays.
We who … had no backpacks, but a bag with one book and two notebooks inside, a pencil and a pen. Nothing more.
We who … our summer holidays weren’t always nice because we had to go to summer camp, and we missed our friends.
We who … when there was no school, no one would dream of making us take up sports courses because we invented sports in the courtyard or in the parks.
We who … in first grade filled entire notebooks with rods, with uppercase and lowercase letters of the alphabet, in block letters and in cursive, and only with a wooden pencil, the “lapis”.
We who ... only after months learned to write with a straw pen, using bottled ink.
We who ... the teacher also gave us a grade for beautiful handwriting.
We who ... had a wooden pencil case with a lid that opened by pulling it backwards.
We who ... the teacher gave us a bad note if we made "dog ears" on the pages of the notebook and of the book.
We who ... on the walls of the classrooms there were many posters with the letters of the alphabet, with the image of the object with the initial letter corresponding to the figure next to it.
We who … took the class photo with the map behind us.
We who … the children wore shorts to school even in winter.
We who … in fifth grade the teacher read us the newspaper, and explained the most important news to us.
We who … the school desks were made of wood, with two seats joined together, with a tilted writing surface, a flap and a shelf to put the books on, a hole for the inkwell and a groove for the pens.
We who … before starting the lessons the teacher made us recite a little prayer.
We who … learned the multiplication tables by heart because we didn't know what a calculator was.
We who … on the last page of the squared notebooks there was the multiplication table.
We who … learned poems by heart and rapid mental calculations.
We who … learned to do sums with the abacus, and learned geography looking at the globe.
We who … the teacher lived far away; she walked all the way, but was never late.
We who … the morning school break was called “recreation”, and we played in the courtyard.
We who … for science lessons we had to bring leaves from different trees, various fruits, wild flowers, seeds etc., and then for homework we had to draw them in our notebook.
We who … picking leaves, flowers etc. were the research to do at home.
We who … when the teacher was explaining we had our arms folded, and when she questioned us at the blackboard we had to keep our arms behind our backs; the positions were called “first” or “second”.
We who … if the teacher pulled our ears or slapped us, when we told it at home we got twice.
We who … if the teacher put a note in our diary, at home it was terror.
We who ... the most undisciplined pupils were put behind the blackboard.
We who ... when the teacher went out into the corridor for a break with her colleagues, she put the class leader at the blackboard to mark "the good and the bad"; the good were always friends, and the bad, well just imagine it ...
We who ... the teacher always kept a wand ready for use as an important pedagogical and didactic tool.
We who ... if we addressed the teacher we had to say "Madam teacher" and naturally we used the formal address.
We who … the "teacher" was the Maestro, and in the fifth grade we studied things that today students don't even study in the final year of the middle school.
We who ... the teacher inspected our cleanliness: she looked at our nails, ears, neck, and if they were dirty she scolded our mother.
We who ... walked to school alone in any weather, even if we lived far away, and at the end of the lessons our parents were not outside waiting for us, and we returned on foot.
We who ... the teacher gave us dictation full of words that were purposely difficult to understand, and write sentences full of traps like " there was beeswax in the hive" or "the room was in disarray and the notebook was nowhere to be found".
We who .... if we got some words wrong, we had to write them 100 times.
We who ... if we chatted in classroom, the teacher gave us to write 100 times "I must not chat while the teacher explains..." or "I must not say bad words..." etc.
We who ... the next day the teacher checked if we had written the 100 times and, knowing our handwriting, made us repeat them 200 times because "you didn't write it... you had help".
We who ... in school there was no such thing as attention deficit disorder or dyslexia ... you were just a donkey.
We who ... in fifth grade had older classmates, the repeaters.
We who ... the cut copy paste were scissors, tissue paper, and glue.
We who ... there was a class leader, and when an adult entered he shouted: "stand up!"; and we all stood up; we stayed like that until the teacher said: "sit down!"
We who ... who blew “sucked” paper balls with the tube of the pen.
We who ... to go to middle school (not compulsory) we had to take the entrance exam, with three written tests and an oral interview.
We who ... in first grade our only book was "the primer"; from second grade onwards there was instead the "textbook".
We who ... school ended at 12/13 hrs, and then we went home for lunch with the whole family.
We who ... went to school on Saturdays.
We who ... were all good classmates, but if there was a bully, the teacher would take care of teaching him a lesson.
We who ... when there was gym class we left home in tracksuits, all happy.
We who ... there was no gym at school, and we did gymnastics in the courtyard without changing our uniforms.
We who ... used gym shoes only for gymnastics, and not for acting cool.
We who … the only snack was Buondì Motta, and we ate the sugar grains on top of the icing.
We who … the janitor sold snacks to make ends meet.
We who … at school sweets cost 1 cent and liquorice strings 2 cents.
We who … played puffball with paper balls on the double desk; the hole for the inkwell was the goal.
We who … 1 November was ‘All Saints’, not Halloween.
We who … there was no racism, and we were all equal.
WE WHO STUDIED HAVING FUN WITH OUR CLASS MATES WHO WERE OUR FRIENDS!
WE WHO AFTER SCHOOL IN THE 1950S
We who … had to wear a sweater when Mum was cold.
We who … didn’t need much to be happy. A book was a special gift that we took great care of.
We who … at birthdays, all of our classmates were there, absolutely all of them.
We who … the Christmas balls were made of glass and broke.
We who … still remember the gifts we received as children at Christmas, truly desired, and not chosen from catalogs.
We who … had no cell phones … so no one could track us down. Unthinkable.
We who … drove in cars without seat belts or airbags.
We who … had no child safety locks on medicine boxes, in bathrooms, on electrical outlets.
We who … had a gang, and we took an oath to be part of it.
We who … if we made a mess, no one called the police. At most, they threw a bucket of water at us.
We who … had no video games, or tape recorders, or computers. But we had lots of friends.
We who … went to bed at 21.00 hrs. after the Carosello commercials.
We who … the commercials were Carosello, with Calimero the black chick, Carmencita, the brilliantine Linetti, Honey Ambrosoli, Ringo with his Montana canned meat, the white horse of the Vidal bath-foam, and the sweet Euchessina.
We who … played in the park.
We who … went out to play, with the only obligation of returning before sunset.
We who … formed teams to play a game; not everyone was chosen to play, and those who were rejected didn’t suffer any disappointment that turned into trauma.
We who … played soccer with pine cones.
We who … even threw pine cones at each other.
We who … our mothers didn't see us with the echography.
We who … studied the Italian language, not Itagliazzian.
We who … spoke Italian correctly even when we played.
We who … didn't make any distinction between rich children and poor children.
We who … all played together.
We who … had a single teacher, almost always a female teacher, who taught all the subjects.
We who … went to school dressed in uniform: the boys with a black blouse and the girls with a white or black apron.
We who … at school we all wore a white collar with a bow.
We who … at school even the teachers wore a black apron.
We who … aspired to the good cockades.
We who … had to write with our right hand, even if we were left-handed, because the left was the devil's hand.
We who … the teacher had a two-colour pencil, blue for minor mistakes, and red for serious mistakes.
We who … sharpened the pencil till we could no longer hold it.
We who … had notebooks with a black cover and red edges on the sheets.
We who … had a practise notebook and a fine notebook; the teacher took them both away to see if we had copied the others' homework.
We who … had a fine notebook with squares, and a lined one with different lines spacing according to the grade.
We who … when the notebook was full we used the cover to cut out carnival masks.
We who … school started on October 1st, but on the 4th of the same month there was already a day off because it was St. Francis, the patron saint of Italy.
We who … went to school alone, and came back alone,
We who … on the first day of school, parents only accompanied only those who were starting the first grade.
We who … on the first day of school already knew that the teacher made us write “little thoughts” about how we spent the holidays.
We who … had no backpacks, but a bag with one book and two notebooks inside, a pencil and a pen. Nothing more.
We who … our summer holidays weren’t always nice because we had to go to summer camp, and we missed our friends.
We who … when there was no school, no one would dream of making us take up sports courses because we invented sports in the courtyard or in the parks.
We who … in first grade filled entire notebooks with rods, with uppercase and lowercase letters of the alphabet, in block letters and in cursive, and only with a wooden pencil, the “lapis”.
We who ... only after months learned to write with a straw pen, using bottled ink.
We who ... the teacher also gave us a grade for beautiful handwriting.
We who ... had a wooden pencil case with a lid that opened by pulling it backwards.
We who ... the teacher gave us a bad note if we made "dog ears" on the pages of the notebook and of the book.
We who ... on the walls of the classrooms there were many posters with the letters of the alphabet, with the image of the object with the initial letter corresponding to the figure next to it.
We who … took the class photo with the map behind us.
We who … the children wore shorts to school even in winter.
We who … in fifth grade the teacher read us the newspaper, and explained the most important news to us.
We who … the school desks were made of wood, with two seats joined together, with a tilted writing surface, a flap and a shelf to put the books on, a hole for the inkwell and a groove for the pens.
We who … before starting the lessons the teacher made us recite a little prayer.
We who … learned the multiplication tables by heart because we didn't know what a calculator was.
We who … on the last page of the squared notebooks there was the multiplication table.
We who … learned poems by heart and rapid mental calculations.
We who … learned to do sums with the abacus, and learned geography looking at the globe.
We who … the teacher lived far away; she walked all the way, but was never late.
We who … the morning school break was called “recreation”, and we played in the courtyard.
We who … for science lessons we had to bring leaves from different trees, various fruits, wild flowers, seeds etc., and then for homework we had to draw them in our notebook.
We who … picking leaves, flowers etc. were the research to do at home.
We who … when the teacher was explaining we had our arms folded, and when she questioned us at the blackboard we had to keep our arms behind our backs; the positions were called “first” or “second”.
We who … if the teacher pulled our ears or slapped us, when we told it at home we got twice.
We who … if the teacher put a note in our diary, at home it was terror.
We who ... the most undisciplined pupils were put behind the blackboard.
We who ... when the teacher went out into the corridor for a break with her colleagues, she put the class leader at the blackboard to mark "the good and the bad"; the good were always friends, and the bad, well just imagine it ...
We who ... the teacher always kept a wand ready for use as an important pedagogical and didactic tool.
We who ... if we addressed the teacher we had to say "Madam teacher" and naturally we used the formal address.
We who … the "teacher" was the Maestro, and in the fifth grade we studied things that today students don't even study in the final year of the middle school.
We who ... the teacher inspected our cleanliness: she looked at our nails, ears, neck, and if they were dirty she scolded our mother.
We who ... walked to school alone in any weather, even if we lived far away, and at the end of the lessons our parents were not outside waiting for us, and we returned on foot.
We who ... the teacher gave us dictation full of words that were purposely difficult to understand, and write sentences full of traps like " there was beeswax in the hive" or "the room was in disarray and the notebook was nowhere to be found".
We who .... if we got some words wrong, we had to write them 100 times.
We who ... if we chatted in classroom, the teacher gave us to write 100 times "I must not chat while the teacher explains..." or "I must not say bad words..." etc.
We who ... the next day the teacher checked if we had written the 100 times and, knowing our handwriting, made us repeat them 200 times because "you didn't write it... you had help".
We who ... in school there was no such thing as attention deficit disorder or dyslexia ... you were just a donkey.
We who ... in fifth grade had older classmates, the repeaters.
We who ... the cut copy paste were scissors, tissue paper, and glue.
We who ... there was a class leader, and when an adult entered he shouted: "stand up!"; and we all stood up; we stayed like that until the teacher said: "sit down!"
We who ... who blew “sucked” paper balls with the tube of the pen.
We who ... to go to middle school (not compulsory) we had to take the entrance exam, with three written tests and an oral interview.
We who ... in first grade our only book was "the primer"; from second grade onwards there was instead the "textbook".
We who ... school ended at 12/13 hrs, and then we went home for lunch with the whole family.
We who ... went to school on Saturdays.
We who ... were all good classmates, but if there was a bully, the teacher would take care of teaching him a lesson.
We who ... when there was gym class we left home in tracksuits, all happy.
We who ... there was no gym at school, and we did gymnastics in the courtyard without changing our uniforms.
We who ... used gym shoes only for gymnastics, and not for acting cool.
We who … the only snack was Buondì Motta, and we ate the sugar grains on top of the icing.
We who … the janitor sold snacks to make ends meet.
We who … at school sweets cost 1 cent and liquorice strings 2 cents.
We who … played puffball with paper balls on the double desk; the hole for the inkwell was the goal.
We who … 1 November was ‘All Saints’, not Halloween.
We who … there was no racism, and we were all equal.
WE WHO STUDIED HAVING FUN WITH OUR CLASS MATES WHO WERE OUR FRIENDS!
WE WHO AFTER SCHOOL IN THE 1950S
We who … had to wear a sweater when Mum was cold.
We who … didn’t need much to be happy. A book was a special gift that we took great care of.
We who … at birthdays, all of our classmates were there, absolutely all of them.
We who … the Christmas balls were made of glass and broke.
We who … still remember the gifts we received as children at Christmas, truly desired, and not chosen from catalogs.
We who … had no cell phones … so no one could track us down. Unthinkable.
We who … drove in cars without seat belts or airbags.
We who … had no child safety locks on medicine boxes, in bathrooms, on electrical outlets.
We who … had a gang, and we took an oath to be part of it.
We who … if we made a mess, no one called the police. At most, they threw a bucket of water at us.
We who … had no video games, or tape recorders, or computers. But we had lots of friends.
We who … went to bed at 21.00 hrs. after the Carosello commercials.
We who … the commercials were Carosello, with Calimero the black chick, Carmencita, the brilliantine Linetti, Honey Ambrosoli, Ringo with his Montana canned meat, the white horse of the Vidal bath-foam, and the sweet Euchessina.
We who … played in the park.
We who … went out to play, with the only obligation of returning before sunset.
We who … formed teams to play a game; not everyone was chosen to play, and those who were rejected didn’t suffer any disappointment that turned into trauma.
We who … played soccer with pine cones.
We who … even threw pine cones at each other.
We who … a bit of chalk, a bag of bottle crown caps (marbles with photos of cyclists were a luxury), maybe a bit of wax to go faster, filled the afternoons on the sidewalk.
We who … on the beach had plastic marbles with the figure of a cyclist, and everyone wanted to have the pink jersey figure.
We who … at the seaside in the morning had to wait two hours before entering the water, because we had had breakfast! In the afternoon, we had to wait three hours before entering the water, because we had had lunch!
We who … skates had 4 wheels, and they got longer as the foot grew.
We who … whoever left the longest trail when braking with the bike was the best, we even biked on the road, it wasn't that dangerous.
We who … cut ourselves, broke a bone, lost a tooth, but no one was reported for these accidents. It was no one's fault, just our own.
We who … grazed our knee, and put mercury chrome on it, and the redder it was the more we boasted.
We who … after the first match there was the rematch, and then the final, and then the final of the final.
We who … played names-things-animals-cities, and we learned geography as a game.
We who … were always 4 stickers short of finishing the Panini football album (have, have, have, have, I miss it!).
We who … went out, took our bikes or walked to our friend’s house, rang the bell, or simply went in without knocking, and he was there, and we went out to play.
We who … rang strangers bells, and then ran away.
We who … had the “secret hiding place” with the “secret passage”.
We who … played with the electric Lima train, because the other brand (Rivarossi) was too expensive.
We who … tortured our wrists trying to bounce the click-clack balls as long as possible.
We who … in the morning drank milky coffee, without corn flakes and muesli, but with bread and butter.
We who … on the beach had plastic marbles with the figure of a cyclist, and everyone wanted to have the pink jersey figure.
We who … at the seaside in the morning had to wait two hours before entering the water, because we had had breakfast! In the afternoon, we had to wait three hours before entering the water, because we had had lunch!
We who … skates had 4 wheels, and they got longer as the foot grew.
We who … whoever left the longest trail when braking with the bike was the best, we even biked on the road, it wasn't that dangerous.
We who … cut ourselves, broke a bone, lost a tooth, but no one was reported for these accidents. It was no one's fault, just our own.
We who … grazed our knee, and put mercury chrome on it, and the redder it was the more we boasted.
We who … after the first match there was the rematch, and then the final, and then the final of the final.
We who … played names-things-animals-cities, and we learned geography as a game.
We who … were always 4 stickers short of finishing the Panini football album (have, have, have, have, I miss it!).
We who … went out, took our bikes or walked to our friend’s house, rang the bell, or simply went in without knocking, and he was there, and we went out to play.
We who … rang strangers bells, and then ran away.
We who … had the “secret hiding place” with the “secret passage”.
We who … played with the electric Lima train, because the other brand (Rivarossi) was too expensive.
We who … tortured our wrists trying to bounce the click-clack balls as long as possible.
We who … in the morning drank milky coffee, without corn flakes and muesli, but with bread and butter.
We who … the yogurt was in that nice YOMO glass jar, and was strictly white.
We who … bought pizza and focaccia for 50 cents from the baker, ice cream for 30 cents, and we didn't go to the dietician for weight problems because we were always out playing.
We who … shared a drink between the four of us, drinking from the same bottle, and no one was ever sick from it.
We who … drank fresh water from the fountain in the park.
We who … went to get milk, with a large bottle, from the milkman. The flavour was much better from that of any carton package today.
We who … ate because we were hungry, and today we are hungry but we are on a diet!
We who … played with rocks and wood, marbles and cards.
We who … fought with paper missiles blown from a plastic cane.
We who … when the Milan Trade Fair began, we ransacked the brochures from all the stands.
We who … played the scubidù.
We who … at table football it was forbidden to “blend”.
We who … played soccer in the parish courtyard.
We who … if we passed the ball to the goalkeeper with our feet, and he caught it with his hands, it wasn’t a foul.
We who … laughed all the time at mass, and if we didn’t go it was trouble.
We who … as cubs shouted a big howl.
We who … got fever from sunburn because sun creams didn’t exist, and we never put on a T-shirt.
We who … when we sneezed no one called an ambulance.
We who … took pills for sore throats, and not to get high at the disco.
We who … broke thermometers, and the mercury balls went around the house and we got squashed.
We who … adopted stray cats and dogs that never gave us any deadly disease, even though after petting them we put our fingers in our mouths.
We who … were always very busy with nothing.
We who … we had grown up when we could wear long trousers all year round.
We who … had video games, or tape recorders, or computers, but we had lots of friends.
We who played spin the bottle all sitting on the floor.
WE WHO … WERE SO VERY HAPPY WITH WHAT WE HAD!
We who … bought pizza and focaccia for 50 cents from the baker, ice cream for 30 cents, and we didn't go to the dietician for weight problems because we were always out playing.
We who … shared a drink between the four of us, drinking from the same bottle, and no one was ever sick from it.
We who … drank fresh water from the fountain in the park.
We who … went to get milk, with a large bottle, from the milkman. The flavour was much better from that of any carton package today.
We who … ate because we were hungry, and today we are hungry but we are on a diet!
We who … played with rocks and wood, marbles and cards.
We who … fought with paper missiles blown from a plastic cane.
We who … when the Milan Trade Fair began, we ransacked the brochures from all the stands.
We who … played the scubidù.
We who … at table football it was forbidden to “blend”.
We who … played soccer in the parish courtyard.
We who … if we passed the ball to the goalkeeper with our feet, and he caught it with his hands, it wasn’t a foul.
We who … laughed all the time at mass, and if we didn’t go it was trouble.
We who … as cubs shouted a big howl.
We who … got fever from sunburn because sun creams didn’t exist, and we never put on a T-shirt.
We who … when we sneezed no one called an ambulance.
We who … took pills for sore throats, and not to get high at the disco.
We who … broke thermometers, and the mercury balls went around the house and we got squashed.
We who … adopted stray cats and dogs that never gave us any deadly disease, even though after petting them we put our fingers in our mouths.
We who … were always very busy with nothing.
We who … we had grown up when we could wear long trousers all year round.
We who … had video games, or tape recorders, or computers, but we had lots of friends.
We who played spin the bottle all sitting on the floor.
WE WHO … WERE SO VERY HAPPY WITH WHAT WE HAD!
WE WHO IN HIGH SCHOOL IN THE 1960S
We who ... never experience racism.
We who ... did not know what drugs were.
We who ... there were no drug pushers outside the school building.
We who ... lived the 1968.
We who ... occupied schools.
We who ... during the school occupations held heated debates on capitalism and socialism.
We who ... took to the streets to demonstrate.
We who ... protested against this society.
We who ... lived the dark years, amidst unheard-of violence and massacres, and witnessed social and class struggles.
We who ... talked about politics.
We who ... talked about philosophy.
We who ... made philosophy with lively debates with the professor.
We who ... talked about literature.
We who ... went to see essay films.
We who ... to do research, and delve deeper into the topics, went to study in the library, not surfing the Internet.
We who ... refuted the professors in class.
We who ... left the classroom in protest when the professor told us not to doubt his word.
We who … when there was a substitute teacher we played bridge.
We who … wrote messages for the girlfriend on pieces of paper passed on to the classmate for delivery to the girl.
We who … in England attended summer English courses, ended up in a class of only Italians, never spoke English, but came back experts in swearing in Neapolitan, Roman, Sicilian and Venetian.
We who … sang The Beatles songs with the English teacher who played the guitar.
We who … sang My Heart's in the Highlands by Robert Burns (1789) with the English teacher who played the guitar.
We who … studied the masterpieces of fourteenth-century English literature in the original language, and not the modern English version.
We who … studied the social classes in Great Britain by reading Look Back in Anger by John Osborne (1956).
We who … listened to Ariosto’s Orlando Furioso on the radio during lunch.
We who … watched the great TV series of literary masterpieces.
We who … organised shows in the parish, and in the Aula Magna of the high school.
We who … performed in the shows we organized.
We who … cheer up because professor Clown (the maths teacher) is coming next.
We who … wrote letters in Latin to the girls we liked.
We who … paid attention in class and studied seriously.
We who … the grades were based on merit, not on sympathy or pity on the part of the teacher.
We who … the grades were not based on notion-ism, but on having truly understood the lesson.
We who … some students were not as brilliant as others, and when they lost a year, they repeated it. No one went to the psychologist, the educational psychologist, no one suffered from dyslexia or attention problems or hyperactivity; they simply repeated and had a second chance.
We who … when we graduated from high school thought we had made it, and instead we just started our journey into the life ahead.
We who … entered university prepared, and with a cultural background that allowed us to appreciate critically the study, and to debate with the professors.
WE WHO LEARNT LIFE BY STUDYING!
AND AFTER THE SCHOOL IN THE 1960S
We who … there was no FukFok, Fakebook, Istantfool, Shitter/X, Telecrap, WhatsThefuck.
We who … had no cell phone to talk in private on the terrace.
We who … went to the telephone booth to make a phone call, and it was a mess because we could never find a coin.
We who … had cell phones (there were SIP booths to make a phone call) and no one could track us down.
We who … low cost was hitchhiking, and even without Internet and a cell phone, we made unlikely appointments on the last day of school.
We who … went to the bar to play biliard.
We who … when we rode bicycles or scooters we didn't wear helmets.
We who … read the newspapers printed on paper every day.
We who … grew up on bread and I Gufi cabaret.
We who … knew all the songs by I Gufi, and all the lyrics by heart.
We who … listened to our friends’ band: bass, drums, guitar, and a keyboard.
We who … competed in the student athletics championships at the Milan XXV Aprile track.
We who … played rugby with CUS Milano at the Giuriati pitch, where Amatori Milano Rugby also played.
We who … went to Austria to ski as it was much cheaper.
We who … went to watch Simmenthal basketball matches at the Milan Palalido.
We who … went to watch the 6 day indoor cycle track at the Milan Vigorelli, and the 20 minutes surplace by Antonio Maspes.
We who … at the San Siro hippodrome horses that trotted under 1’20 km were entered in the roll of honour. Today horses trot under 1’14 km in minor hippodromes.
We who … at the San Siro hippodrome, when the gorgeous Roquepine ended her legendary career by winning the 1968 Gran Premio delle Nazioni, we cried.
We who … went to pop concerts at the Milan Palalido. Dori Ghezzi, Fabrizio De André’s wife, presented the concert. When she went on stage, 5,000 possessed guys shouted “naked, naked, naked!”.
We who … went to classical music concerts and theatre shows.
We who … went to the San Siro football stadium to see football legends, unsurpassed masters of the game.
We who … football matches were not to break the opponents’ legs, and no player dared to insult the referee.
We who … at San Siro there was no violence, but many fathers with children.
We who … at the Champions Cup match between Internazionale Milan and CSKA Sofia there were 80,000 spectators, and only four Bulgarians in the stands.
We who … when CSKA scored I, Paolo, stood up and, with the stadium in a deathly silence, I shouted “goal, goal, goal” just to see the effect it had.
They who … 80,000 watched the fool who was screaming, and Helenio Herrera (the legendary Internazionale manager) stood up from the bench, and made the “fuck you” gesture to me.
We who … went to the movies with our girlfriend, and as soon as the movie started…
We who … went to the theatre to see I Gufi.
We who … had our bunch of loyal friends.
We who … had our first crush.
We who … our summer girlfriends, unforgettable.
We who … rode around the seaside in foldable bikes, and took trips with the Ciao motoped that we turned on by pedaling.
We who … the lifeguard warned us just in time when the mother of our girlfriend we were kissing appeared.
We who … are still in touch with our summer girlfriends, who are now grandmothers.
We who … still keep the letters we wrote and received, and that give us happiness when we read them again.
We who … studied the social classes in Great Britain by reading Look Back in Anger by John Osborne (1956).
We who … listened to Ariosto’s Orlando Furioso on the radio during lunch.
We who … watched the great TV series of literary masterpieces.
We who … organised shows in the parish, and in the Aula Magna of the high school.
We who … performed in the shows we organized.
We who … cheer up because professor Clown (the maths teacher) is coming next.
We who … wrote letters in Latin to the girls we liked.
We who … paid attention in class and studied seriously.
We who … the grades were based on merit, not on sympathy or pity on the part of the teacher.
We who … the grades were not based on notion-ism, but on having truly understood the lesson.
We who … some students were not as brilliant as others, and when they lost a year, they repeated it. No one went to the psychologist, the educational psychologist, no one suffered from dyslexia or attention problems or hyperactivity; they simply repeated and had a second chance.
We who … when we graduated from high school thought we had made it, and instead we just started our journey into the life ahead.
We who … entered university prepared, and with a cultural background that allowed us to appreciate critically the study, and to debate with the professors.
WE WHO LEARNT LIFE BY STUDYING!
AND AFTER THE SCHOOL IN THE 1960S
We who … there was no FukFok, Fakebook, Istantfool, Shitter/X, Telecrap, WhatsThefuck.
We who … had no cell phone to talk in private on the terrace.
We who … went to the telephone booth to make a phone call, and it was a mess because we could never find a coin.
We who … had cell phones (there were SIP booths to make a phone call) and no one could track us down.
We who … low cost was hitchhiking, and even without Internet and a cell phone, we made unlikely appointments on the last day of school.
We who … went to the bar to play biliard.
We who … when we rode bicycles or scooters we didn't wear helmets.
We who … read the newspapers printed on paper every day.
We who … grew up on bread and I Gufi cabaret.
We who … knew all the songs by I Gufi, and all the lyrics by heart.
We who … listened to our friends’ band: bass, drums, guitar, and a keyboard.
We who … competed in the student athletics championships at the Milan XXV Aprile track.
We who … played rugby with CUS Milano at the Giuriati pitch, where Amatori Milano Rugby also played.
We who … went to Austria to ski as it was much cheaper.
We who … went to watch Simmenthal basketball matches at the Milan Palalido.
We who … went to watch the 6 day indoor cycle track at the Milan Vigorelli, and the 20 minutes surplace by Antonio Maspes.
We who … at the San Siro hippodrome horses that trotted under 1’20 km were entered in the roll of honour. Today horses trot under 1’14 km in minor hippodromes.
We who … at the San Siro hippodrome, when the gorgeous Roquepine ended her legendary career by winning the 1968 Gran Premio delle Nazioni, we cried.
We who … went to pop concerts at the Milan Palalido. Dori Ghezzi, Fabrizio De André’s wife, presented the concert. When she went on stage, 5,000 possessed guys shouted “naked, naked, naked!”.
We who … went to classical music concerts and theatre shows.
We who … went to the San Siro football stadium to see football legends, unsurpassed masters of the game.
We who … football matches were not to break the opponents’ legs, and no player dared to insult the referee.
We who … at San Siro there was no violence, but many fathers with children.
We who … at the Champions Cup match between Internazionale Milan and CSKA Sofia there were 80,000 spectators, and only four Bulgarians in the stands.
We who … when CSKA scored I, Paolo, stood up and, with the stadium in a deathly silence, I shouted “goal, goal, goal” just to see the effect it had.
They who … 80,000 watched the fool who was screaming, and Helenio Herrera (the legendary Internazionale manager) stood up from the bench, and made the “fuck you” gesture to me.
We who … went to the movies with our girlfriend, and as soon as the movie started…
We who … went to the theatre to see I Gufi.
We who … had our bunch of loyal friends.
We who … had our first crush.
We who … our summer girlfriends, unforgettable.
We who … rode around the seaside in foldable bikes, and took trips with the Ciao motoped that we turned on by pedaling.
We who … the lifeguard warned us just in time when the mother of our girlfriend we were kissing appeared.
We who … are still in touch with our summer girlfriends, who are now grandmothers.
We who … still keep the letters we wrote and received, and that give us happiness when we read them again.
We who … braved the coastal storms high waves, with the lifeguard who was sweating coldly, and praying not to have to come and rescue us.
We who … went swimming far out until we realised that the beach was a barely visible strip.
We who … went fishing on the pier at sunset.
We who … had rowing boat races with rich prizes, an ice cream lollipop...
We who … went to the Dutch camping to invite girls.
We who … in the afternoon ate French fries bought at the Dutch stand on the seafront.
We who … went swimming naked at midnight.
We who … played the guitar to win girls over.
We who … played the Bontempi keyboard.
We who … got excited by a kiss on the cheek.
We who … the first slow dances.
We who … went to the beach in the evening with the girlfriend for a walk.
We who … the whole group got together after dinner to go dancing on the beach, and sing in a circle.
We who … the cassettes were eaten by the tape player, and we had to rewind the tape with a pencil.
We who … listened to the music on the battery record players with 45 rpm vinyl.
We who … knew all the words of the songs, and sang them at the top of our lungs... today we still remember all the words, but we sing them with a bit of a lump in our throat.
We who … in the evening on the beach were finally free to be alone with our girlfriend.
We who … played furious pinball games.
We who … played football and volleyball tournaments among the bathing establishments.
We who … went to dance clubs, not discos, with artists who sang live.
We who … went swimming far out until we realised that the beach was a barely visible strip.
We who … went fishing on the pier at sunset.
We who … had rowing boat races with rich prizes, an ice cream lollipop...
We who … went to the Dutch camping to invite girls.
We who … in the afternoon ate French fries bought at the Dutch stand on the seafront.
We who … went swimming naked at midnight.
We who … played the guitar to win girls over.
We who … played the Bontempi keyboard.
We who … got excited by a kiss on the cheek.
We who … the first slow dances.
We who … went to the beach in the evening with the girlfriend for a walk.
We who … the whole group got together after dinner to go dancing on the beach, and sing in a circle.
We who … the cassettes were eaten by the tape player, and we had to rewind the tape with a pencil.
We who … listened to the music on the battery record players with 45 rpm vinyl.
We who … knew all the words of the songs, and sang them at the top of our lungs... today we still remember all the words, but we sing them with a bit of a lump in our throat.
We who … in the evening on the beach were finally free to be alone with our girlfriend.
We who … played furious pinball games.
We who … played football and volleyball tournaments among the bathing establishments.
We who … went to dance clubs, not discos, with artists who sang live.
We who … we had the Polaroid camera, and we waited for the photo to be printed.
We who … hosted the doorman's son because he couldn't afford to go on vacation.
We who … spent the summer vacation months at the seaside.
We who … every year the bunch at the seaside was the same group.
We who … our girlfriend this year was our friend's girlfriend the following year.
We who … the same bunch also hung out back home.
We who … went into a dark den of used books to look for the Urania, Saturno, Solaria science fiction series, 50 cents each.
We who … the marvel of the Gulf of Tigullio.
We who … the pitch dark road galleries of Moneglia were defying death.
We who … New Year's Eve didn't end with gunshots and deaths.
We who … were minors, we couldn't vote, but we knew exactly what all the political parties’ programmes.
We who … the parties of the 1st Republic were: Communists, Christian Democrats, Far Right, Liberals, Republicans, Socialists, Social Democrats, and that was it.
We who … joined the groups in Piazza del Duomo in Milan to talk about politics.
We who … talked about politics at home at the dinner table.
We who … Political Tribune was a civil debate between politicians and competent journalists.
We who … went to visit churches not to pray, but to admire the masterpieces inside, and the architecture.
We who … were close to those who were less fortunate, and their parents could not give them what ours gave us.
WE WHO … MANY FRIENDS OF OUR BUNCH ARE NOW UP THERE HAVING THE FUN WE USED TO HAVE TOGETHER FOR ETERNITY!
My Heart's in the Highlands
by Robert Burns, 1789
My heart's in the Highlands, my heart is not here,
My heart's in the Highlands, a-chasing the deer;
Chasing the wild-deer, and following the roe,
My heart's in the Highlands, wherever I go.
Farewell to the Highlands, farewell to the North,
The birth-place of Valour, the country of Worth;
Wherever I wander, wherever I rove,
The hills of the Highlands forever I'll love.
My heart's in the Highlands, my heart is not here,
My heart's in the Highlands, a-chasing the deer;
Chasing the wild-deer, and following the roe,
My heart's in the Highlands, wherever I go.
Farewell to the mountains, high-cover'd with snow,
Farewell to the straths and green valleys below;
Farewell to the forests and wild-hanging woods,
Farewell to the torrents and loud-pouring floods.
My heart's in the Highlands, my heart is not here,
My heart's in the Highlands, a-chasing the deer;
Chasing the wild-deer, and following the roe,
My heart's in the Highlands, wherever I go.
TODAY 2025 WHO THEIR CHILDREN
They who … in elementary school summer vacations last three months, not four. And, that is good.
They who … in elementary school do not wear uniforms. Rich children wear designer clothes. Poor children wear second-hand clothes bought at local street markets.
They who … their classes include black, African, Chinese, Indian, Muslim, Pakistani children. And that is good.
They who … as Italians speak only itaglianizzian learned from parents with master degrees, or by watching television.
They who … the pencil case for elementary school is large, colourful, crafted for the rich.
They who … the perfect pencil case comply to new requirements, and in addition to pens, pencils, erasers, and pencil sharpeners, it must contain other accessories such as rulers, scissors, glue, highlighters, compasses and rulers.
They who … have never seen a bottle of ink.
They who … as rich children eat sweets wrapped in gold paper during morning breaks, signed by celebrity TV chefs.
They who … as poor children watch rich children eat.
They who … rich children invite only other rich children to sumptuous parties.
They who … poor children have parties in the courtyard.
They who … the cartoons are Japanese with heroes who massacre everything that moves with terrifying weapons.
They who … advertisements are of junk food that is harmful to health, or useless stuff, and they scream in the shops “I want it!”
They who … send text messages to friends instead of talking to them.
They who … have never rung the doorbell of their friends’ houses, and ask them to come to play.
They who … have video games, and have never played in the courtyard.
They who … going to play in the park can be dangerous.
They who … find in the park syringes used by drug addicts.
They who … their parents sign them up for sports clubs and soccer teams.
They who ... wear designer tracksuits, shirts and shoes.
They who ... at football games their parents start a fits fight with other parents, and lynch the referee.
They who ... have learned from their parents how to behave when they play soccer.
They who ... their parents skip queues, park in double rows, on pedestrian crossings, in spaces reserved for disabled people, and who will do the same when they grow up.
They who ... some are forced by their parents to steal.
THEY WHO ARE POOR INNOCENT CHILDREN RUINED BY THEIR PARENTS AND SOCIAL MEDIA!
TODAY 2025 WHO AS YOUNGSTERS
They who … started high school without having studied Latin for three years in middle school. Abolished in 1978!
They who … drug dealers are outside the school.
They who … take drugs.
They who … know racism, and are surrounded by racism.
They who … immigrants are shit, and must be despised.
They who … their parents do not accept that their daughters and sons are in the same classes with immigrants.
They who … consider teachers to be fools who can be insulted and threatened.
They who … teachers are replaced by tablets and smartphones.
They who … have never done research in a library.
They who … the lucky ones have teachers who honour their role.
They who … have tablets, laptops, e-book dictionaries, and multiple choice questions when they sit exams.
They who … do maths calculations, and solve problems, using apps on their smartphones.
They who … have never used a fountain pen.
They who … have never smelled writing ink.
They who … don’t read newspapers.
They who … I heard it on the news.
They who … the news are the crap posted on social apps.
They who … live on social apps.
They who … walk around in packs dressed in uniform, same shirts, same jackets, same shoes, the rich with designer stuff, the poor bought second-hand at local street markets.
They who … at friends’ house parties there is a disco system, and psychedelic lights.
They who … take drugs at friends’ house parties.
They who … at friends’ house parties listen to metal and rap, with lyrics that celebrate hate and violence.
They who … friends’ house parties are orgies and gang rapes.
They who … what is jazz?. The Milanese, on the other hand, know that jass means ice.
They who … television only broadcasts trashy programs created by fools for fools.
They who … only the cultural channel of the Rai state television broadcasts classical music and theatre plays.
They who … what is cabaret?
They who ... video games and movies are full of unspeakable violence.
They who ... their friends are a gang of rapists.
They who ... spend exotic vacations with daddy's money.
They who ... the young fascists of Casa Pound are always ready to beat up immigrants.
They who ... at carnival every rape is permitted.
THEY WHO NEED URGENT HELP!
We who … hosted the doorman's son because he couldn't afford to go on vacation.
We who … spent the summer vacation months at the seaside.
We who … every year the bunch at the seaside was the same group.
We who … our girlfriend this year was our friend's girlfriend the following year.
We who … the same bunch also hung out back home.
We who … went into a dark den of used books to look for the Urania, Saturno, Solaria science fiction series, 50 cents each.
We who … the marvel of the Gulf of Tigullio.
We who … the pitch dark road galleries of Moneglia were defying death.
We who … New Year's Eve didn't end with gunshots and deaths.
We who … were minors, we couldn't vote, but we knew exactly what all the political parties’ programmes.
We who … the parties of the 1st Republic were: Communists, Christian Democrats, Far Right, Liberals, Republicans, Socialists, Social Democrats, and that was it.
We who … joined the groups in Piazza del Duomo in Milan to talk about politics.
We who … talked about politics at home at the dinner table.
We who … Political Tribune was a civil debate between politicians and competent journalists.
We who … went to visit churches not to pray, but to admire the masterpieces inside, and the architecture.
We who … were close to those who were less fortunate, and their parents could not give them what ours gave us.
WE WHO … MANY FRIENDS OF OUR BUNCH ARE NOW UP THERE HAVING THE FUN WE USED TO HAVE TOGETHER FOR ETERNITY!
My Heart's in the Highlands
by Robert Burns, 1789
My heart's in the Highlands, my heart is not here,
My heart's in the Highlands, a-chasing the deer;
Chasing the wild-deer, and following the roe,
My heart's in the Highlands, wherever I go.
Farewell to the Highlands, farewell to the North,
The birth-place of Valour, the country of Worth;
Wherever I wander, wherever I rove,
The hills of the Highlands forever I'll love.
My heart's in the Highlands, my heart is not here,
My heart's in the Highlands, a-chasing the deer;
Chasing the wild-deer, and following the roe,
My heart's in the Highlands, wherever I go.
Farewell to the mountains, high-cover'd with snow,
Farewell to the straths and green valleys below;
Farewell to the forests and wild-hanging woods,
Farewell to the torrents and loud-pouring floods.
My heart's in the Highlands, my heart is not here,
My heart's in the Highlands, a-chasing the deer;
Chasing the wild-deer, and following the roe,
My heart's in the Highlands, wherever I go.
TODAY 2025 WHO THEIR CHILDREN
They who … in elementary school summer vacations last three months, not four. And, that is good.
They who … in elementary school do not wear uniforms. Rich children wear designer clothes. Poor children wear second-hand clothes bought at local street markets.
They who … their classes include black, African, Chinese, Indian, Muslim, Pakistani children. And that is good.
They who … as Italians speak only itaglianizzian learned from parents with master degrees, or by watching television.
They who … the pencil case for elementary school is large, colourful, crafted for the rich.
They who … the perfect pencil case comply to new requirements, and in addition to pens, pencils, erasers, and pencil sharpeners, it must contain other accessories such as rulers, scissors, glue, highlighters, compasses and rulers.
They who … have never seen a bottle of ink.
They who … as rich children eat sweets wrapped in gold paper during morning breaks, signed by celebrity TV chefs.
They who … as poor children watch rich children eat.
They who … rich children invite only other rich children to sumptuous parties.
They who … poor children have parties in the courtyard.
They who … the cartoons are Japanese with heroes who massacre everything that moves with terrifying weapons.
They who … advertisements are of junk food that is harmful to health, or useless stuff, and they scream in the shops “I want it!”
They who … send text messages to friends instead of talking to them.
They who … have never rung the doorbell of their friends’ houses, and ask them to come to play.
They who … have video games, and have never played in the courtyard.
They who … going to play in the park can be dangerous.
They who … find in the park syringes used by drug addicts.
They who … their parents sign them up for sports clubs and soccer teams.
They who ... wear designer tracksuits, shirts and shoes.
They who ... at football games their parents start a fits fight with other parents, and lynch the referee.
They who ... have learned from their parents how to behave when they play soccer.
They who ... their parents skip queues, park in double rows, on pedestrian crossings, in spaces reserved for disabled people, and who will do the same when they grow up.
They who ... some are forced by their parents to steal.
THEY WHO ARE POOR INNOCENT CHILDREN RUINED BY THEIR PARENTS AND SOCIAL MEDIA!
TODAY 2025 WHO AS YOUNGSTERS
They who … started high school without having studied Latin for three years in middle school. Abolished in 1978!
They who … drug dealers are outside the school.
They who … take drugs.
They who … know racism, and are surrounded by racism.
They who … immigrants are shit, and must be despised.
They who … their parents do not accept that their daughters and sons are in the same classes with immigrants.
They who … consider teachers to be fools who can be insulted and threatened.
They who … teachers are replaced by tablets and smartphones.
They who … have never done research in a library.
They who … the lucky ones have teachers who honour their role.
They who … have tablets, laptops, e-book dictionaries, and multiple choice questions when they sit exams.
They who … do maths calculations, and solve problems, using apps on their smartphones.
They who … have never used a fountain pen.
They who … have never smelled writing ink.
They who … don’t read newspapers.
They who … I heard it on the news.
They who … the news are the crap posted on social apps.
They who … live on social apps.
They who … walk around in packs dressed in uniform, same shirts, same jackets, same shoes, the rich with designer stuff, the poor bought second-hand at local street markets.
They who … at friends’ house parties there is a disco system, and psychedelic lights.
They who … take drugs at friends’ house parties.
They who … at friends’ house parties listen to metal and rap, with lyrics that celebrate hate and violence.
They who … friends’ house parties are orgies and gang rapes.
They who … what is jazz?. The Milanese, on the other hand, know that jass means ice.
They who … television only broadcasts trashy programs created by fools for fools.
They who … only the cultural channel of the Rai state television broadcasts classical music and theatre plays.
They who … what is cabaret?
They who ... video games and movies are full of unspeakable violence.
They who ... their friends are a gang of rapists.
They who ... spend exotic vacations with daddy's money.
They who ... the young fascists of Casa Pound are always ready to beat up immigrants.
They who ... at carnival every rape is permitted.
THEY WHO NEED URGENT HELP!
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