Showcase Sunday: When I was in the 7th Grade I punched Kathy S. in the nose
But I didn't shoot anyone.
When I was in the 7th grade I was a frustrated kid who was getting picked on in school. My family had moved to a small farming town, and I didn't fit in. My classmates called me "The Dog" and made all the dog jokes you can imagine, "give her bone", barking, etc. I was in that awkward Jr. High phase and none of us realized it wasn't forever.
7th grade school photo*
Going to school in the morning was difficult and my social and conflict resolution skills were low. The teachers and the parents tried to help sort it out. I remember one of my teachers giving the kids a lecture on not picking on me, which was as humiliating as the torment I received from the students.
Nothing changed.
My parents, on at least one occasion, loaded me into the car for a meeting with the principal and counselor where I remember sitting there wishing I was invisible while the adults talked in serious tones, while looking concerned. I don't recall what was said.
Nothing changed.
Meanwhile I became a bit more angry and frustrated. Kathy Shinder was the girl who bloomed a little earlier than the rest of us. I remember she had the cool Britannica Jeans, shiny blond hair and she kept a comb in her back pocket to occasionally flip through her perfectly golden locks. Kathy Shinder was a "cool girl" and she loved to make fun of me. I was so envious of her that I didn't even hate her, but I was jealous.
Nothing changed.
One day Kathy was walking one direction in the hall and I was headed the other direction. Due to crowding in the hall we had to pass each other and as she walked by she cocked her elbow and delivered a nice blow to my ribs as I passed.
What happened next is a blur. I don't recall considering what my next options were. In fact the next memory I have was her sliding down a locker to land on the hall floor with a bloody nose. I had punched her in the nose, and we didn't really know what to do next. Other students had gathered and were cheering. Teachers soon drug us to the office where I was suspended for a day.
Everything changed.
When I went back to school, everything had changed. I was forced to apologize, which started a bit of a friendship. I was now receiving friendly teasing instead of mean spirited teasing. I ended up bonding with some kids and started to develop a group of friends. It needed to be me that ended the situation. I am not sure anyone else could have done it.
I am not advocating punching people in the nose, but I am also not sorry I bunched Kathy Shinder in the nose.
I did not turn into a bully that punched everyone. In fact I have never hit another person since Kathy.
Once in a while, though... It might be a good solution.
Many childhood fights in the 70s and early 80s were worked out in this manner and nobody ever shot anyone even though this was a small farming town and we all had access to guns. The boys drove pickups with gun racks, nobody ever shot anyone.
I don't pretend to be able to define the problems surrounding school shootings, and I am not even advocating we teach kids to punch each other. I have to say I think about it sometimes. Have we removed the tools kids use to resolve issues, by putting too much focus on "mean words" and "hitting"?
If you wish to talk about gun control, I can't stop you... But I will not engage unless you can define the law you wish to make and name the shootings it might have impacted.
this post is in honor of @nonameslefttouse #showcaseSunday
That was a nice meaningful story, but who the hell or why hates ya so much to downvote you like this?
edited: ohhh I've got it now, just had a look who they are and read some comments. well trolls will be trolls...
Yeah, don't give it any thought at all.
I'm not.
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thank you
Moral of the story - We need to punch people a lot more
That’s what I got out of it.
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I concur. There's too much talk sometimes. Escalate a situation straight to brutal physical pain and people get the message. Of course, with the ability to do so comes great responsibility, the need to know when and when not to administer brute force. I learned the ability to both deliver it and decide not to at a young age and also the benefits of effective communication - Humans can be disgusting to each other and their willingness to vilify others is despicable...Sometimes brute force is required, especially in defence of those who are unable to defend themselves.
Haha, I wouldn't say we need to punch people often. I would say, if it is going to get resolved a fist is better than a gun.
@empress-eremmy hahahaha😂😂😂😂😂
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Fuck Kathy!!! Sometimes you need to stand up for yourself. Lol. Good for you.
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There comes a snapping point
Oh I’m with ya 100%
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Why did the fucker have to elbow you like that? I think she was begging for a bloody nose.
By the way, you don't look too different from what I imagined you to look like. I had a vague image of a now middle-aged woman who definitely did not have a dark hair. There is no connection between anything you've written and a potential hair color. I suppose something in your style reminded me of someone or an aggregate of people I've met whose hair color or aggregate hair color was more on a lighter side. :)
Haha, I do think people can pick up on culture and other things from just the way we speak.
Yes, I'm the middle aged, middle class white lady from the USA through and through. I can't pretend otherwise.
Omg... I have almost the same story. Relentlessly, cruelly bullied. In two days I slapped on girl hard in the face, and one boy got a milkshake tipped on his head. Meak old me. I wish I had have known that a year earlier. I totally advocate a punch to stop school bullies. Guns, not so much.
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Yep, I don't know it was the best solution, but it did work and it was the only one I knew at the time.
Am sure you must have had enough, like you just needed to pour it out which you did. Not justifiable though but sometimes that's the only solution at the moment. I despise bullies....
Hope you are having a nice day?
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I agree, I'm not advocating for hitting people, I am just saying sometimes there is a time and place. Not often, but not never.
The change in attitudes in the 90's were possibly liked to Hollywood, and a silly little movie called "Lord of the Flies" released in 1990. But then again it could of had something to do with the removal of all those "Violent" Saturday cartoons and replaced with "Care Bears" type cartoons in the mid 80's.
And then again, we will likely really not know why schools changed, why society suddenly changed, and why we had to treat junior high school kids with kid gloves. At some point in time society decided it was up to "adults" to make sure kids did not grow up to stand on their own two feet.
I'm pretty sure that back when we were in school there weren't many people on medications for mental health conditions. Haven't most of the school shooters been on medication?
There have always been bullies in schools and often a quick, sharp shock was the lesson they needed to stop. Kids don't realise the pain they cause (emotional or physical) until it's turned on them, then you often see a sudden change. Hubby was always small for his age, so he attracted bullying. Unfortunately for them, he also had a temper. The bullying quickly stopped when the big one got a fist to the face and a chipped tooth.
I do wonder how much interference actually stops us from resolving issues.
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Every one of the shooters was under psychiatric care and on fluoride based psychoactive drugs.
As a matter of fact one of the shooters was complaining that his medication was making him have violent and suicidal thoughts. The parents bring him into the doctor about it and the doctor's solution was to double his medication. A few weeks later he shot up his school.
They have concealed by clamming that medical records are confidential and can not be released. I think it is a convenient excuse to cover up the fact that guns didn't kill all these people, psychiatrists and there snake oil did.
Also my father's advice for dealing with bullies was a punch in the mouth. It worked for me almost instantly.
yeah, I think medications have been involved often