My happiest memory of childhood was my first birthday in reform school. This teacher took an interest in me. In fact, he gave me the first birthday presents I ever got: a box of Cracker Jacks and a can of ABC shoe polish.

Wilson frames a bleak childhood experience—being in reform school—as the setting for his “happiest memory,” using irony to highlight deprivation and neglect. The small gifts (Cracker Jacks and shoe polish) underscore how little recognition or care he had previously received, while the teacher’s attention becomes the real “present.” The quote also reflects a common thread in Wilson’s public persona: turning hardship into humor without erasing the underlying social reality. It suggests that a single adult’s kindness can be formative, and that dignity and belonging can matter more than the material value of what is given.