The following photo and Generation X halloween memoir is provided by Jim, an Oklahoma blogger whose photography blog, LightSmith Photo, celebrates 84 days today. His blog is just terrific. Check it out!

From Jim:
"When I was 5 my father was deployed to Viet Nam. Before he left, he moved my mom, my 8 year old sister and me to Savannah, Georgia to be near my mom's family. For Halloween that year my mom and my aunt bought military costumes for us male grandchildren. My cousin Lee got an orange pilot's jumpsuit. I'm not sure what my cousin Herb got but I think it may have been from the Navy. I got a Green Beret camouflage number. I remember that year especially because even at 5 I felt a strong sense of pride wearing the uniform in honor of my absent father. I know that he carried this photo with him while he was over there. I'm thankful he was able to bring it back himself to put in our photo album."

***

As sidebar, I just learned that Jim, who was AMS president at SNU his senior year, helped bring Fallfest back to the student body. Fallfest is an October costume and carnival event at the private Christian university. I enjoyed it every year while in college, and I can't believe Jim led its return just one year prior to my freshman year! We sure had great fun running around the mall in costumes.

***

Jim was born in 1961. I find with the Gen Xers who bookend our generation (1961 and 1981), they are never quite sure where or if they belong. I talk often with my brother (born in 1962) about how he really didn't know he was a Gen Xer until I started writing this blog. Various messages began to really resonating with him and he's had a dozen ta-da and a-ha moments since.

There is at least one academician who thinks Gen X begins in 1958, and a number who think it ends in 1978. As I always say, if you don't know what generation to which you belong, that's a good indication you're an Xer. There is so much pride associated with being a Boomer and Gen Yer, and so little associated with being Gen X, it's like group identification is just now dawning on us. I'm so glad it is!