In the first grade, in addition to standard school lessons, I had to learn terrain orientation.
This happened when our young group under the control of class leader Irina Vladimirovna went to a circus show. The show itself has been wiped out of my memory, but the further adventures I remember like yesterday.

As a child I was active and sociable, but by a strange conjunction of circumstances at some point I lost sight of all familiar faces.

Staying alone with the cold city, I decided not to wait for help and get home on my own.

Armed with a red ball on a plastic stick, I just went straight. At some point, the adults noticed a schoolboy wandering alone. I told him that I was lost, and I needed to go to the station — my only point of reference, as we often came to it with our parents on foot. An indifferent woman gave me 5 rubles and named the numbers of the trams that go in the right direction.

I cried obediently, and there was a white noise in my head, so afraid to get on the wrong tram, I continued my walking path of a lonely samurai.

Underground crossings, parks and shopping complexes. At some point, I completely forgot about my trouble and no muscle on my face gave me a loss. Just a 7-year-old man on a day promenade.

Luckily, I was on my side, as after an hour I saw the familiar buildings. At the station for the "income" of 5 rubles, I bought a few Chupa-Chups and quickly got home on a familiar road.

As I learned later, I had to walk a total of about 10 km.

At home, I did not tell anything about the way home, so as not to scare my parents. He quietly went into the room to do his child’s affairs until the door was ringing.

At the threshold stood a classy leader with bad news. Mom listened to Irina Vladimirovna with misunderstanding, and a minute later I appeared from her back.

For the full picture, I did not have enough to offer the remaining Chupa-Chops. After all, the teacher was tired, and she also needed to "support."

I can’t remember any further conversations, but since then I’ve never felt lost again.

Wind in the face, a red ball on the stick, concrete streets. Over time, I got upset and learned the tram routes, but this is a completely different story.