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I think we were at recess playing hop scotch, as I remember
that day. It was a cool day and winter was on its way. It
was not cold enough for a coat so Mama put a sweater on me
that day. I was in the third grade and I really loved school
for the most part.
As one of the girls, Emily was her name, jumped one two
three on one foot and she put two feet down on the five and
six, she was doing real well, I heard a boy hollering not
far from us. We all stopped to listen to what he was
saying. He was singing it loud and using my name.
He sang "Nanci goes to the Holy
church, Nanci goes to the Holy church" and on and on he
went ???til I figured he must not know that I was Baptist
and always had been.
I said to him, "Jimmy, I go to the
Baptist Church, same as you do, silly boy."
He pointed to my old wool sweater that
had been my sister's until someone washed it and it shrunk
up. No one could wear it but me, and it DID have a hole in
the elbow of it, a big hole. I was so embarrassed, all I
could do was cry and take the hateful sweater off and roll
it up in a ball and put it with my other things.
That didn't stop him from his taunting
and a few of the girls giggled and snickered about it
too. Emily didn't though. She came over to me and held my
hand and told me not to pay any attention to him, and that
he was just a stupid boy. But it hurt. It hurt real bad. I
don't know why I wore that sweater and didn't notice the
hole in the sleeve. I guess I was too little to worry about
such things.
After that day I never wore the sweater
again and it was too far gone for mama to fix it so it went
into the t rash heap. I hated that boy for many years
because of how he made me feel that day. I really did. I
know I didn't hate him but I hated the way he made me feel.
I guess I should have thanked him for making me more aware
of how I looked before I left the house. But all I could
think of was the chant "Nanci goes to the Holy Church" and
my stupidity of thinking he was talking about my church
instead of making fun of the hole in my sweater.
After that, I became somewhat popular
in that small school. I was the captain of the patrols, I
was in all the plays and in sixth grade I was May Day
Queen. Guess who tried to be friends with me all those
years and guess who I ignored like he didn't even exist.
I guess I was just as hateful as he was
behaving like that. It took me a long time to get over the
embarrassment of that day and to get over hating him and
realizing he was just a kid trying to be funny. I learned
to understand that children can be very cruel and I tried to
teach my children that lesson at a young age also. Young
children have very sensitive feelings as they try to make
their way while growing up.
I always loved school and have
wonderful memories of all those years. I heard a few years
ago that Jimmy died and I did feel sorrow, sorrow for
a young boy who was part of my youth. I hope he had a good
life. I can still visualize that old wool sweater with the
hole in the elbow of the sleeve.
Nanci L. Stroupe
Onenoni @ aol.com
Nanci has written many short stories
for Starfish over the past four years and also has had
several of her stories published in Heartwarmers, Stories
for a Woman's Heart and the last one was in Half Full.
She and her husband enjoy their life together. Their church
is very important to their spiritual growth. As he golfs,
she writes, reads and has recently joined the Red Hatters
Society. Her daughter, Sher helps her format her stories
and deserves a lot of credit for all that have been
published.
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May your day be blessed
Bob Johnston |
