This weeks Theme is Branch

I attended Paint Branch Elementary School for 4th and 5th Grades. The school was brand new. It had that lovely brand new school smell.

I was able to attend this school because my sitter lived in Lakeland. My mother had to make special arrangements with the county to attend a school outside of the district we lived in. My mother was a single working mom.

My sitter was from St Lucia. Her name was Sevillie. She wore the neatest silver bracelets that made a tinkling noise when she walked. When we were playing in the basement we had time to stop doing, whatever we were not supposed to be doing, when we heard the bracelets.

Lakeland was a middle class black community within spitting distance of the University Of Maryland. The homes were all nicely kept and the community was like a small town. Back then we could go play for hours and just check in at lunch and then we had to be back in time for Mom to pick us up. We couldn't do anything out of the way, everyone knew us and would report back to Savillie if we got into any foolishness. Wade and I being the only light skinned children in the neighborhood, we were pretty recognizable.

There used to be a railroad crossing at the end of Lakeland road and that was the fastest way to Savillie's from our apartment. Twice a year, at least, the lakes would flood and we would have to go the long way around. They have since closed that railroad crossing. We don't know if someone was hurt at the crossings or the lakes just flooded so often they closed the road.

The lakes had a resident loon. Often at recess the loon would call. I love that sound.