Been a tad over a half century, but it was almost like yesterday. We were in Mr. (yes, Mr.) L's 5th grade class.

He had a science lesson to teach us kids, and i recall the careful preamble he used, guess he didn't want to have to deal with a room full of crying 10 year-olds - shortly following, calls from upset moms and dads.  He began.  "This is just a theory..."  He had explained to us, that a theory is an intelligent guess, one that is based on evidence.  He went on to tell us that, according to the theory of evolution, while drawing a chart on the blackboard.  He summarized that man came from the ape. At the bottom, he wrote "Hominids" and drew arrows, one of which led to us.  Another leading to modern day chimpanzees and gorillas.

Ape may sound too simple, but every 10 year-old knows what an ape looks like.  Apes have finger-like digits (no thumbs) and feet.  They can stand up, grasp a stick and use it to bore shallow holes in the moist forest soil, and carry some roots or grubs to their young, and have a free arm.  They pitch the stick.  Bears, deer and tigers can only pick up and carry things with their mouths.

Anyway, i distinctly remember being a bit shocked - never heard of such a thing, my parents weren't into science journals; they'd flip on the tv, because they were tired from working all day - but then looking at my hands and thought,"neat."

Over the following decades, i believed in evolution, because that's what the science books taught.  But evolution just didn't square with Scripture, so that always left a gap, one that supa-puddy wouldn't fill...even the good stuff would eventually crack and fall out.

Lunch is over...bummer!