Laurel Mill, a landmark near where my mom went to high schoolback when i was in middle school, i was obsessed with rings, as most pre-teen girls probably are... well at the time, my mom had her old high school class ring, a high school that no longer exists. so anyway, she let me wear her ring. i wore it for a long time, all the time, etc.
until one day, i let one of my "friends" (who happened to be black) wear the ring. it was probably a friday. and, i forgot to get it back. or, maybe she said "let me wear it for the weekend." i really can't be certain.
of coarse, me NOT wearing it home from school was quickly noticed by my mom. who was quite upset, and rightly so. i explained what was to happen, that i was supposed to get it back on monday. well on monday, i didn't get it back. the girl said (and i do remember this) that she let her cousin wear it. so on tuesday, i can't remember if my mom called her mom, or if we went to her house. her mom probably wasn't home. i think there were like 20 people living in their little green house right down the street from school. they were poor.
i suppose mom did what i would have done if i were older and wiser, but boy was i embarrassed. so embarrassed that i remember that that was the end of my friendship with this girl. and, there began the year (or 2) that i hated black people (because she stole my mama's ring, at least that is what my 12 year old mind thought). (let me also add that this 'hate' was more a 'fear' and probably propagated by the raging hormones of a middle school girl.)
the next year, 8th grade, one of her "cousins" (named vicki) wanted to fight me because i didn't like her or something. i don't really remember why, but i do know she was black. our high school was located across from a shopping center that had resturants and stuff, and after school one day i walked over to get ice cream. she and 2 others followed me. in a threatening manner. ... i wasn't about to fight a black person (because at my middle school "they" were all related and by fighting with one meant you would be fighting with ALL of them), especially off school property where noone would be around to stop her from killing me. so, i ducked into kerr drugs and stayed put until my mom came to get me.
i'm sure mom remembers this because i didn't want to go back to school. ever. because i knew what was about to happen.
the next day, this girl, vicki, pushed me 'up' a set of stairs. i had my hands in my pockets and just fell right down. i didn't get up, i wasn't gonna fight. i knew that would land me in more trouble than it was worth, not only with my dark colored peers, but with my mom and dad (who would be very disappointed if i got in a fight, and i'm not really a fighter anyway...) noone knew about this, a fight never happened, i just shrugged it off and kept walking.
long story short, the adventure of high school quickly made my 'hate' (fear) of black people fade away. for one, this girl (and her mean cousin) probably dropped out of school because i do not remember them in my high school. plus, i suppose hormones kinda level off by the time you are 16 and therefore you get past all those fears and misunderstandings.
all these years later, the ring has been written off as "stolen" "melted" "lost". it was years before my mom would give me a ring to wear. she did, finally, give me some (via santa). i still have them all. the first was an emerald ring. next was a cameo. next was my very own high school class ring, with a sapphire, just like hers.
UP NEXT: what goes around comes around!
oh geez i can't wait for the second part of this memory...
ReplyDeletesecondly, what does the picture of laurel mill have to do with the story?
ReplyDeleteoh never mind. I just read the caption to the picture...
ReplyDeleteAnalee. I didn't tell Kate this story and I am so glad I didn't!
ReplyDeleteI did call Mel. and tell her. Kate was so little when all of this happened, you know. I don't think she would remember any of it. I didn't know about the pushing at school but I do remember the day at Kerr Drugs. Do you remember that stupid city policeman that kept asking you if you wanted to press charges?
BTW, that little green house has now been remodeled and looks very nice. Wonder where those girls went....I remember a big family of girls living there.
When I was in junior high (as we used to call it in the olden days), it was the "Chicanas" (Mexican girls) who used to torment me and my friends. Partly because they tended to hang around in gangs, and partly (mostly) because they hated us because they saw as as rich and stuck up. Well, compared to them, we WERE rich, but I don't think we were stuck up.
ReplyDeleteWhen I was in 7th grade, I took a bus to my junior high (before the school in our neighborhood was built).
The Chicanas would try to keep us from getting to the bus, thereby missing it, and, having to hang around the school waiting for mom to come get us.
So, after the sixth period bell would ring, we'd all run pell mell like hell to the bus, a) to get onto the bus and b) to get a good seat (some of the REAL stuck up girls would hog the seat and not let you set with them).
Anyway, I'll never forget one day, all of the Chicanas and Chicanos got particularly upset and pissed off at us rich kids because they couldn't catch us. So, they attempted to push our bus OVER!
Thankfully, we had a HUGE bus drive (Bernie) who ran out of the bus yelling and hollering and waving his arms at them so they all scattered.
I don't think they ever tried that again but, still, every day, it was a run for the roses!