Maybe it's because if he really was born in August 1961 he would have been too young to be in grade three?
A former Manoa resident sent President Barack Obama an old photo of the two of them taken while they were third-grade classmates at Noelani Elementary School, requesting an autograph more than six months ago. He recently received the autographed picture back, as well as a personally signed thank-you note.
Widely published biographies say Obama lived in Indonesia from 1967 through 1971, and none mention his third-grade year at Noelani, Inoue acknowledges. But he said Obama attended at least part of his third-grade year at Noelani in 1969, perhaps during a visit back to Hawaii, and moved away.
Operative phrases: “taken while they were third-grade classmates at Noelani Elementary School,”
“he said Obama attended at least part of his third-grade year at Noelani in 1969, perhaps during a visit back to Hawaii,”
Must have been a long visit — but why, and why isn’t it mentioned in “Dreams...”?
I had not seen that photo with an article saying they had been classmates. That would certainly indicate Barry was in Hawaii in 1969 for a longer period than just Christmastime.
Assuming the school would have been closed for the actual “Christmas vacation” recess, the photo would most likely have been taken prior to that recess starting. There are those drawings of Christmas trees on the wall in back of the boys - clearly pre-Christmas art projects. As I recall from my school days, and my kids’ school days, the teachers went in during the recess and took down all the Christmas decorations. A “clear” room for the start of the new year, so to speak.
It’s too bad little Scott and his mother couldn’t have had a clue as to the potential importance of their remembering in precise detail everything about Barry’s presence in Hawaii. It’s extremely helpful for our side that she, or Scott [whichever] even came up with the photo - don’t you just know Obama’s initial reaction was to curl up fetal-style and suck his thumb?! Obie knows we all are out here, digging and analyzing - he doesn’t know, however, how many more “Scotts” might be as well.
Maybe it's because if he really was born in August 1961 he would have been too young to be in grade three?