All I Ever Needed to Know I Learned in Kindergarten

A weeks ago my bride and I started doing some post holiday clean out. I came across an old paperback copy of one of my favorite books “All I Really Needed to Know I Learned in Kindergarten,” by Robert Fulghum.

This book was published in 1986. The year I graduated from high school. The year I started college. 1986 was a glorious year, for sure.

I decided to reread this book to see if the yellowing pages had the same impact on me after some 30 plus years stuffed in a box.

The book is comprised of short stories. The kind of stories that make us feel good. The kind that make us think about everyday happenings. The kind that make us slow down, and savor life for a minute. Old school stuff, for sure.

The Rules

You see this book is really about a set of rules. Rules of living decently with other human beings. Rules that were relevant to adults (and kindergarteners) in 1986. But who knew that we would need these rules even more today. A lot more. Rules like “play fair” and “say you’re sorry when you hurt somebody.” Basic things that we all learned, even before we could even write our own name with a broken Magenta crayon.

Before you realized that nobody wants the white crayon or the white jelly beans.