Am I Six or Sixty?

I’ve settled on being six,
When I thought it okay to chase boys.
It was the best age for everything;
I believed everyone would share their toys.

When I was six, I was pretty,
And I learned to tie my shoes,
And the alphabet was shaped like people
That did backbends and juggling moves.

I no longer believed my big brother
And sister knew everything
Because I had my own teacher now
To teach me what life would bring.

And then I got in trouble
For talking to Freddy, my beau
And for borrowing Rosary’s crayons
I was moved to the front of the row.

When my teacher told me that
I was bad for being sick,
I learned to hide my asthma;
I had taught myself that trick.

But I did learn the alphabet
And what every letter said;
I began to recognize
The words that were being read.

At recess it was easy
To have a lot of fun;
I was never afraid
To walk up to anyone

I would ask their names
And what they liked to do
If I didn’t know how to do a thing
I was an eager student, too.

The boys had fun games, like marbles
While the girls twisted their curls;
But the teachers didn’t like
Boys to play with girls.

Boys and girls were sinful,
If you put them together.
There were all kinds of other bad things.
Of the law, we learned the letter.

Now, here I am at almost sixty;
My second chance at childhood.
I caught my permanent beau,
And the fun we have is good.

Feeling innocent again,
I think my faith is fixed.
You can try to change my mind,
But I like being six.