Wednesday, March 13, 2019

Wistful Wednesday:Tall friend

Growing up in a rural community and attending grade school in a nearby bump in the road I knew many different kids.  All those kids are now in their late 60’s. Jobs and different life paths can take you away from your roots. 

Grade school classes had about twenty students each. Everyone went to Release Time Class on Wednesday throughout the school year.  We walked as a group to Dorothy’s home.  In her basement we heard Bible Stories and prayed together. 

Dorothy’s oldest son was a year older than me.  He was tall, always the tallest in his class. I recall one day in line at the water fountain when the Principal came out of his room with his yard stick with the red bow and began to whack him on the back.  His back must have been covered in marks, besides that I was inline at that fountain and didn’t see any behavior that warranted a beating.  I lost all respect for the principal that day. 

It couldn’t have been easy for my friend being so tall and uncoordinated.  In high school he became a basketball player, not the star of the team but a good team player.



Many years later  we would live just down the street from my tall friend and his wife, our children would play together.  I was day care for their two daughters for a time.  Now those little girls are all grown up with children of their own.  Lately they have had to make very hard health decisions for their tall Dad. 

Just before he got real ill and entered the hospital he sent me a music video CCR’s  Have you ever seen the rain
I pray the last part of his journey is peaceful.
Far Side

26 comments:

Sallysmom said...

I started reading this blog entry & thought at first it would be a sweet memory. But it actually saddens me. Even not knowing him I also pray his journey is peaceful.

Miss Merry said...

I remember when children (mostly boys from poor families were beaten with a paddle by the principal. We could hear the whacks down the hall. It makes me sick to my stomach to this day.

DJan said...

I wish him a peaceful final passage. It's always difficult to lose a parent. :-(

Pauline Persing said...

I pray for your tall friend, too and for all those who were beaten when they were too young to protect themselves.

Sara said...

It's difficult to watch the friends and family around us deal with these difficult health issues.

Cynthia said...

Children weren’t always treated with understanding and respect for differences back in the day. Im glad it’s not that way today but sometimes i thInk we lean a little too far the other way, discipline-wise. Tall kids always stood out and got teased but many of them came into their own in sports and dating and stuff later. My best friend was tall and the boys called her Spider Legs and other hurtful stuff and no one asked her to dance. She grew up to be a 6 foot fashion model!

Tired Teacher said...

Bless your tall friend and his family. May their final days together be filled with love and peace.

Unknown said...

I knew the Dorothy you spoke of. Her sister was our Pastor's wife and they served our rural church for close to 30 years. Wonderful people! May her son's final days be blessed.

Anonymous said...

I thought this would just be a normal memory when I started reading your post this morning. Isn’t it strange how someone’s life can be summed up in a few short paragraphs? I will be praying for your tall friends family and the decisions that have to be made and of course for him too.
I was very tall in elementary school. In fifth grade I was 5’10”. I towered over everyone, including the boys. I still remember the hurtful words that were said to me. To top it all off, I was skinny as a rail. Children can be so cruel. And people who say that words can never hurt you are totally wrong. They are branded into your mind.
Wishing you a lovely day today my friend. Blessings,

L. D. said...

Good memories and bad memories seem to show up more as we age. it is interesting that your tall friend stayed in the community and you helped with the girls. I would teach long enough that I would have kids in school of the parents that I had it school. My Sunday school kids grew up and now are sending their children to our classes. Medical decisions are difficult and sometimes they are made as health conditions demand them. It is bad when they are being made with people who are still too young to be experiencing the illness.

Maebeme said...

My thoughts go out too, to your tall friend that his passing may be peaceful surrounded with the love of his family and friends. Far too soon.

Karen said...

That was a sad read. The cruelty of some humans to others sickens me to my core. May your tall friend have a peaceful passing.

The Feminine Energy said...

Awwww.... :-( I'm so sorry to hear about your tall friend, Connie. The older we get, the more we have opportunity to think such thoughts as you have here, don't we. One by one, the obituary column in the newspaper lists people we actually know & sometimes were even close to but lost touch. I wish your tall friend a peaceful passing and I hope he gets to talk to that principal in heaven. I'm sure they will get things all straightened out. Love, Andrea xoxo

Fiona said...

The strange thing is, despite the severe discipline we had in school I think we all turned out rather well.
I was the short kid.....but my best best friend was the tall kid.
God will take care of your tall friend and he will let him play CCR as loud as he wants.
God bless you and keep you.

Bonnie said...

I'm sorry to hear this. Sending comforting prayers to your friend and his family.

Paula said...

So sad! I pray for his journey. I was always one of the tallest kids in my class.

Debi said...

I am sorry about your tall friend. I was a tall kid and suffered from lots of teasing, but I survived, as did your friend. I wish him a peaceful passing.

Granny Marigold said...

Blessings on your tall friend who will no doubt be remembered as a good man. The principal maybe not so much.

Jo-Anne's Ramblings said...

Back in the day principals and teachers thought they had the right to be abusive towards students wouldn't get away with such behaviour now days

Sam I Am...... said...

What an awful principal! I hope your friend has a peaceful journey and I hope he has more good memories than bad.

Elizabeth said...

So sad and I'll be saying prayers for your tall friend. My friend was the class clown but the nuns took him out of the room so I never heard or saw the whacks, but there were the rumors. One nun would whack her ruler on our desk, it always made me jump and jolted me out of a daydream.

Red said...

That's a very sad story to hear. Things like that should never happen.

diane in northern wis said...

Hi Connie. Did you ever find out why your friend was getting whacked like that? I'm glad your friend ended up having a good life...I will pray with you, that the last of his days are peaceful and filled with people he loves.

Linda Reeder said...

This post left me with a lot of questions.

The Wykeham Observer said...

The sad thing is this tall person was probably just thinking some happy thought and the punishment ruined his day. All for nothing. I think it has an immeasurable sad impact on people.

Rose said...

OH, what a post. I am not yet 65, but I grew up where two grades were in one room, one teacher in elementary school...and two of the boys are have passed one. Being in that small class was more like brothers and sisters in ways. Anyway, I feel your pain. And that song was always one of my very favorite songs. (I did a post one time that has a list of a lot of songs with 'Rain' in the title.)