6408

How much do you remember about 6th grade? There are a select few things I can remember actually learning in 6th grade. I distinctly remember learning how to divide fractions and order of operations. I remember getting extra credit for a science class by following the directions precisely, which involved a weird order for the heading.

There is little else I remember. One of the few things I do remember is the second day of sixth grade. The guidance counselor came and talked to my homeroom class. She handed each of us a paper copied from some county handbook. It had the code number 6408 on the top. One of my classmates, I don't remember who anymore, started singing 6408 over and over again. The number stuck.

The lesson the guidance counselor gave was all about harassment. I thought it was absolutely weird/scary that on the second day of middle school, a counselor came in to talk to us about harassment and how serious it was and what to do if we were harassed. Well, I think the bigger message was lost thanks to the kids who repeatedly sang 6408.

Like some many other messages and lessons in school, it was repressed until something triggered it in my mind. Well, yesterday at work I was typing some numbers and 6408 came up. It brought back the memory and the oh-so-lovely song about 6408.