I remember in the early grades of elementary school our teachers let us watch educational programs on black-and-white television. These were broadcast on WSJK-TV, Sneedville, Tennessee, an affiliate of PBS, the Public Broadcast(ing) System.
Some of the programs were geared toward the middle elementary grades. One focused on cursive writing—at the end of each episode we were shown by the host how to create art from the particular cursive letter that was the focus of the day. There was another program where the host read us the beginning of a story, but never the ending. This was to encourage us to check the book out of the library and finish it on our own.
Probably the programs most Maynardville Elementary students of my generation remember were Sesame Street and The Electric Company. I remember these early childhood educational programs often focused on letter/sounds and numbers. Possibly Schoolhouse Rock did this, also.
I remember a jingle that focused on the number “three”—“Three is a magic number. Yes, it is, it’s a magic number.” Somewhere in the jingle were the words, “Man and a woman had a little baby. There were thre-e-e in the family.”
Another jingle featured the number “zero”—My hero, Zero, such a funny little hero.”
The numbers that have been most predominate in my life for the majority of the past decade has been the family known as “the fifties” (or “50s”, if you prefer). I’m not talking about the decade of the fifties—that is only history for me, as I was not yet born. There are many, however, who remember and nostalgically yearn for those “better” times. Consider the following observations:

What passes for entertainment [today] is sickening – all blood and gore, sadistic killers, aliens who pop out of people’s stomachs and monsters in various guises. We search in vain for contemporary movies with characters we can admire or at least care about. So we retreat to cinema of the 40s and 50s on TCM.

You came of age in the 50s and 60s. You are the last generation to experience an interlude when there were no threats to our homeland. The second world war was over and the cold war, terrorism, global warming, and perpetual economic insecurity had yet to haunt life with unease.

We are the children of the fabulous 50's and 60s. No one will ever have that opportunity again. We were given one of our most precious gifts: living in the peaceful and comfortable times, created for us by the "greatest generation!"

The phrase “I’m hip!” was used by someone to describe the feeling of having been raised in the decade of the 1950s.

The number fifty is monumental in many respects. America seemed to have attained its ultimate “manifest destiny” when it grew from the first settlement and original colonies to fifty states, the last of which was added during the 1950s. All fifty of those states are listed across the top of the Lincoln Memorial on the back of the $5 bill. Both Presidents John Adams and Thomas Jefferson died on the fiftieth anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence.
A humorous tale also gives some significance to the number fifty. To get rid of his old fridge, a man put it in his front yard and hung a sign on it saying: “Free to good home, you want it, you take it.” For three days the fridge sat there without anyone looking twice. He eventually decided that people were too mistrustful of this deal. He changed the sign to read: “Fridge for sale $50.” The next day someone stole it!
If you are under fifty, you can anticipate what being fifty might be like. It is obviously a unique experience for each individual. Turning age fifty is a milestone, as is turning any age that ends in zero, especially as the numbers in front of the zeroes get larger. If you are, like me, in the mist of the fifth decade of your life, you can meditate on how your experience compares with the observations provided.
Alexander Hamilton is quoted as having said, “Nobody expects to trust his body much after the age of fifty." George Orwell said, “At fifty, everyone has the face he deserves." Comedian George Burns noted, "When I was young, I was called a rugged individualist. When I was in my fifties, I was considered eccentric. Here I am doing and saying the same things I did then, and I’m labeled senile." I probably relate most with this quote from Barry Cryer: "I’m 59 and people call me middle-aged. How many 118-year-old men do you know?"
Some people achieve greatness during their fifties. President Thomas Jefferson is a prime example. At 53, he served as Vice President and was elected the President of the American Philosophical Society. At 55, he drafted the Kentucky Resolutions and became the active head of the Republican Party. At 57, was elected the third President of the United States. These accomplishments made during his fifties made him an American historical legend.
If you have moved beyond the fifties, you can contemplate your life going forward. This can be viewed either as negative or positive. T. S. Eliot opined: “The years between 50 and 70 are the hardest. You are always being asked to do things, and yet you are not decrepit enough to turn them down.” On a positive note, know that oak trees do NOT produce acorns until they are fifty (50) years of age or older.
This discussion is based not on personal experience, but on tidbits received in recent years from an email friend. My hope for you every day, Dear Reader, is that your todays are better than your yesterdays but never as good as your tomorrows.