Once in a while on Facebook I get a friend request from someone I knew years ago. It happens to everyone. It’s always nice to revisit something, conjure up some memories. I notice that sometimes my recollections have a different slant than the person who has either sought me out or seen my name on another friend’s friend list. That friend of a friend stuff.
The bully of grade four had requested my friendship, something he hadn’t made any effort to do in public school. I couldn’t decipher from our initial encounter if he really did know who I was. He mentioned our teacher and how he nearly flunked that year but wrote nothing that led me to understand that he understood our relationship in those harried days of my nervousness.
I was the little guy. I had been ‘accelerated’ through grades 2, 3, and 4 in two years, which resulted in being one year younger than my classmates and often many years younger than the bullies.
I used to think the bullies secretly loved school and that’s why they repeated grades. Then one Saturday I was in the backseat of our car when my dad said, “They’re a bad bunch,” as he pointed at a house that had three cars parked where we had a front lawn. I saw Danny Jenkins (not his real name) on the front steps with his head in his hands. The whole scene reeked of sadness.
When I received Danny’s friend request I hesitated. My stomach burned a little. I was reluctant to click on his name, like he’d know and if I didn’t confirm his request he’d come after me. I didn’t recognize him but he was wearing familiar clothing, the same white T-shirt covered with an unbuttoned denim shirt. He was heavier, he had a pony-tail, and he was holding up a book. I read his bio, he was a writer. The book in his hand was the fifth in a series of Fantasy novels. I went to Amazon, he was there.
I was glad to know he’d made it off the front porch. I clicked ‘confirm’, which could just as well have been “why not”. Just before I closed my laptop I noticed that Danny had almost 5,000 friends.
Photo Credits
Bully – Microsoft Office Clipart Collection
Guest Author Bio
Jeffrey Griffiths
Jeffrey Griffiths has previously written articles for Life as a Human. His short fiction has been published in various Literary Journals. He teaches Creative Writing at Mohawk College in Hamilton Ontario where he lives with his wife, daughter and son.
Blog / Website: http://affectsoftv.blogspot.ca/
Hi there, Jeff I have been there. Most of us who grew up in Hamilton have had the unwanted attention of a street bully. Your reference to a school,and a neighbourhood,the cars on the lawn.how I could rant.My street particulary ,had a rift caused by reigion. That is the catholics and the protestents.The two schools were near to each other.The problem was mostly on Sundays when it was necessary to walk by ,neighbours dressed in suits and werd hats we called pea hats. I have never recovered fully from the tzaunts and abuse we, my brothers and I faced, every time we went out, dressed out in our finery. However there is a very bleak side to society. One which requires a scapegoat. The subject has only to be weaker and prahaps a little different. The fact is the scars from these incidences are very deep. This is why stigma is generational,as slight and minor hurts are carried on and in a visious cycle hatredis prepetuated.
A blast from the past. Glad the bully guy grew up and changed. Maybe he has redeemed himself with word and thought. I wonder if his bad guy characters are really insightful?
Flash backs; passive, aggressive and the wonderful chocolate cake mum used to make.