Hummingbird Block

 

I was ten when our family moved from California to New York. We rented half a farm house some fourteen miles from Oneonta. The interstate that roars along the Susquehanna hadn’t been built yet, so every morning we spent at least half an hour on Route 7 – Daddy on his way to work, and the rest of us to school. On our way, we’d pass the Otego Elementary School: an imposing brick edifice built during the Great Depression. There were double doors on opposite ends of the building, with “BOYS ENTRANCE” and “GIRLS ENTRANCE” in concrete Arts & Crafts-style bas relief above these doors. I used to imagine segregated classrooms inside, where children could learn in an atmosphere best suited to their gender. Science shows there are benefits to this approach, but in a society that tries to deny that the sexes are in any way different (except when someone decides to switch sides), it’s a tough sell.