Los Baños, California: School and Adjustment

By Cliff Potts
Bay Bay City, Leyte, Philippines — July 30, 2026

This is a serialized installment from the autobiography of Cliff Potts.

St. Mary’s

I began school at St. Mary’s Catholic School that fall.

The nuns recognized that something about my reading was different, but they misidentified the problem. My comprehension was not weak; my mind moved faster than my speech. Oral reading was difficult because words arrived faster than they could be articulated.

They placed me in a special reading program—flashcards, repetition, memorized passages. The drills satisfied their metrics, but they did not address the underlying issue.

The Condition

At some point, my mother was told that if she made a donation of a certain size to the church, I would pass. If she did not, I would not.

She either could not or would not make that payment.

I was failed.

At the time, it felt personal. Later, I considered other possibilities—economic bias, outsider status, or simple institutional pressure. I no longer carry anger about it, but I carried the embarrassment for years.

The Accusation

Another incident added confusion. A student reported that I had claimed to be expelled from seven different schools. I was in second grade. The accusation was implausible, but it was taken seriously enough to reach my mother.

I denied saying it. I was not believed.

Years later, the irony became clear. By the time I finished eighth grade, I had in fact attended seven different schools across California, Peru, and Chicago.

It was coincidence, not prophecy.

What Remained

I left St. Mary’s having completed First Communion and First Confession. I also left with an early understanding that adults can misinterpret children, sometimes confidently.