"IT"

Medea rejuvenates Aeson by Nicolas-André Monsiau

JESSICA:
In such a night

Medea gather'd the enchanted herbs

That did renew old Aeson.

LORENZO:
In such a night

Did Jessica steal from the wealthy Jew

And with an unthrift love did run from Venice

As far as Belmont.

From The Merchant of Venice

ACT V
SCENE I. Belmont. Avenue to PORTIA'S house.

*

I probably shouldn’t write about “it”, but I will.
At my age I suppose it’s o.k. if I write about “it”.

I won’t tell what “it” is for as long as I possibly can to keep your curiosity, or drive you completely nuts.

The setting for this “it” (that I will eventually expose), was at my junior high school.

Belmont Junior High.

Home of the Panthers.

Can you guess what the school colors were?

You were right.

They were black and white.

*

I was too young to know much about panthers or

“it”.

All that I remember about my kindergarden class is how much I enjoyed riding in trains that my teacher made out of paper boxes.

I don’t think I learned very much in first grade.

*

There used to be a tunnel that went under Colfax Avenue so that kids could avoid walking across busy Colfax to get to Belmont.

The subterranean tunnel was wet, dark and spooky.

But it was fun to walk through.

I always expected something bad to happen, but nothing ever did.

My parents' house was about two miles from the school, but it seemed a lot closer because I always took short cuts.

*

There was a girl at Belmont that I became obsessed with.

She had blond hair and always wore black clothes.

I followed her a few times and then stopped when I realized that my desire to be with her was just a young boy’s fantasy.

*

My favorite day at Belmont Junior High was DILL PICKLE DAY.

Five cents for a huge dill pickle!

And there were also sock hops that I loved.

There were only a few each school year, but I went to all of them.

A DJ from the nearby radio station came to the school and played songs.

I looked forward to the slow songs.

*

“It” was in my eighth-grade English class.

I wasn’t too interested in English back then.

I was interested in something---with it---that is...
THAT WAS on MY TEACHER.

I forget her name.

But I lie.

Her name was Ms. Milliron.

*

“It” was something that I looked for every day that I came to English class.

On some days I could see “it” better than other days.

But that was o.k., because I knew that “it” would always be there in the same place.

Students never talked about “it”.

“It” was terra incognita, and it was a territory too terrible to talk about.

I sat in front to have a better view of “it”.

Even with my bad eyes I could see “it”.

The first time that I ever saw “it” I blinked hard and thought to myself, “What the heck was that…I mean it?”

*

I waited to look at“it” again.

And again.

And again.

And I always got to see “it” again.

*

I could see “it” better, depending on what Ms. Milliron wore (or didn't wear.)

“It” was as dark as the night.

And there was a lot of “it”.

I think Ms. Milliron knew that I and the entire class saw “it”.

I think she wanted me and the other students to see “it”.

WHAT WAS “IT”?

“It” was the _ _ _ _ on Ms. Milliron's chest!

You can fill in the missing letters.

[Hint: the letters don’t spell a rabbit-like mammal!]

IT'S ABOUT RENEWABLE RESOURCES AND HAIR ON THE CHEST!