Snapshots In My Time, Of My Time.....Hauntings.
Middle School 1973
It was the last day of school and I had brought in a beautiful, crystal bowl for my teacher. My mother bought it and had wrapped it in beautiful floral wrapping paper. That year had been a very bad year. I was bullied that year and for all the years I had been in middle school. I walked the halls of that school in fear. I could not walk home the regular way--a path through the woods that would get me home in 4 minutes. I had tried many times and had to run for my life. Gangs of girls were always waiting for me or following me to beat me up. I learned how to run...fast.
I even tried varying my times leaving school--waiting until everyone was just about gone before I started home. Those girls soon learned to leave late also or wait for me in the woods. I had to run even faster. Finally, I had to take the long way to get home. Noone went that way. It meant I had to walk on the highway to get to my neighborhood to get home. It was about a 40 minute walk each way. Noone bothered me once I began to take that way home. They would have to walk for 40 minutes also.
Well, I was waiting in line by the classroom door for school to begin. Two of the most vicious girls that had been my tormentors the entire school year snatched the crystal bowl from my hands and refused to give it back. We struggled for the bowl and they finally wrenched it away from me and ran. I was crushed. Being the daughter of a school teacher, it was customary for me to give teacher gifts for all occasions. They ran off with my gift and I ran crying to the priciple's office. I knew they would never give that bowl back to me.
The principle and I walked around the school and I pointed out the girls. They did not have the bowl. I explained that I had a crystal bowl and what happened. The principle asked where the bowl was and they said they did not know. The principle knew they were lying and told me to go back to class, he would handle it. I did. About 15 minutes later I was called out of class to the hallway. The principle was there with the girls and my bowl. I assumed it was broken. It was not-unbelievable. It looked intact. The principle told the girl to give me the bowl back. She did. I held out my hands to take it and instead of placing it in my hands she shoved the bowl into my stomach as hard as she could. It knocked the breathe out of me. The principle hauled her away. I got my bowl and I was able to determine that it was not broken. I gave it to my teacher.
The next year my mother placed me back in a private school where I finished school with no more bullies. The damage had already been done though. I was timid, very fearful and my self confidence had been trampled for 3 years of public school and being bullied.
To this day I still bear those scars. Whenever I see one of them around town, I just look at them wondering if they rememeber me and what they did or do they even realize the impact? The thing that I do notice is that they seem to have low paying jobs in the service industry. They never went to college and still seem stuck in that mode they were in. They say the best revenge is living well and I live well and have done well but I still want to know have they suffered any in their lives like I did at their hands? What goes around comes around. I just wish I were there to see it.
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I can see how teens turn to seek revenge on their bullies. You just want to be left alone.
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