Recess A Few Moments Of Sweet Release

There were conflicting stories about what really happened over by the swings.

Did the second-grader in the green Seattle Sonics cap grab and then shove the first-grader wearing the yellow shirt? Or did said first-grader cause his own physical and emotional distress when he leapt from one of the swings and landed awkwardly?

Accusations flew.

With neither party acknowledging culpability, both boys were directed to go stand against a wall and contemplate their behavior. Each accepted the sentence with stoic resignation.

Meantime, recess at Meadow Ridge Elementary School roared right along Friday.

Moments earlier, some 270 kids - first grade through third - had finished their lunches and were giving off a buzz in the cafeteria. They were psyched. And now they were outside and letting ‘er rip - free for half an hour from the pressures of academia and the bridling stricture of “Don’t run!”

Kids shot baskets. Kids threw baseballs. Kids kicked kickballs. Kids played a grass-field game that was a free-form hybrid of soccer, keep-away and dodge ball.

Others clambered in, through and around various jungle-gym playground fixtures at the well-equipped Mead district school.

And some boys and girls just sprinted about, yelling in delirious, gleeful release.

One little girl showed classmates a small caterpillar she had found.

Not far away, a wild-eyed boy pretended to hold something in his hand as he raced up to a pair of comrades. “I found the secret weapon,” he shouted.

Over by a basketball hoop, two other boys played rock/paper/scissors with gusto.

Any adult on the spacious playground was apt to be drafted into constabulary service. (You didn’t have to be a known teacher or volunteer.) “Hey mister,” bleated a lad apparently unwilling to accept that life’s not fair. “That kid over there playing tetherball is cheating.”

But for the most part, a potent brand of childhood happiness ruled the moment. In a way, the high-octane blend of voices was like a tribal song.

“To be young again, huh?” said a woman with a whistle.

The two boys who had been doing time over against the wall won their release and rejoined the frolicking. One hinted that the whole story of what happened over by the swings had yet to be told. But he said he was ready to move on.

Soon it was time to go back inside.

All the kids filed through the doors, except for two little girls who gathered up discarded jackets.

Then, with a silent sigh, the playground was quiet.

, DataTimes MEMO: Being There is a weekly feature that visits Inland Northwest gatherings.