Party at school

In England, when one reached sixteen one generally either left school or changed from High School to College. I am not sure if it is still that way today, or if it has changed to the American or Australian system, where one generally stays on until turning eighteen. In our final year, our class planned a party to celebrate the end of the final year. It was not a school event, just our specific class. One student had had the idea, suggested it to our form teacher, and got her agreement to spend a lunch hour playing music and drinking soda and eating snacks in the cloakroom.

At the time, I was a bit of a goody goody and did not like popular style parties, so showed little interest in the event, despite it being one from my own circle of friends who had made the suggestion initially. Spotting my reaction, they offered to bring along a piece of music with the title Sandy. Sandy being the name I used at the time, finding Sandra too stuffy. I am still a Sande, but I spell it a little more originally these days. I had no idea that there was a song sharing a name with me, so said that I would like to hear it.

The actual party day came along, and I ate my lunch in the school canteen as usual, before going upstairs to the cloakroom. We mostly gathered there for the second half of lunch, unless having a sports class, visiting another class, or strolling the grounds outside. I had a drink of soda and listened to some of the music, but did not dance. I was disappointed to find the friend had not brought the song along, though. In fact, it was two or three years before I finally tracked it down in a second hand record store and finally got to hear it.