Boys: A Medley

The First few boys

I was in 3rd grade.

I moved around quite often as a child. This happened to be the second school I went to. Prior I was in a good neighborhood at a notoriously good school with a predominantly white student population. This new school was located in a bad neighborhood at a notoriously bad school with a predominantly Arabic student population.

I distinctly remember walking in the first day; nervous yet ready to take on the challenge of making new friends.

I also distinctly remember one of the 6th graders in the school who was pregnant. And I remember watching the news a few years later that my teacher Miss. Short, who was by no means short, had been abusing her daughter for years. The same daughter who use to come to our class and teach us the continent song in which I can still recall to this day ringing in my head.

"To learn the seven continents think of the letter 'A' and when we are only down to one 'E' will save the day. There is Africa, Antarctica, Australia, Asia too the oceans run between them with there waters deep and blue. There are also two Americas. North and South you see. Now we're coming to the end Europe starts with 'E'!"

I remember the first time I saw a fight in school. A white boy, whose face was typically several shades of red due to unnecessary rage, who was in my class and any memory I have of him was always him getting mad at the teacher or fellow students. But this boy was also on my bus.

On the way to school one day, he was yelling at another kid about Eminem being the greatest rapper. I was in the seat in front of them. With our bus driver never caring about what was happening on his bus. This allowed everyone to stand up on the bus also.

I happened to be one of the kids standing. Which looking back, was very unsafe when taking into account the faint memory of going on field trips and actually being bucked up out of the bus seat, like the bus was a donkey, with me all but touching the ceiling.

I turned to listen to the drama because I had loved Eminem also. Next thing I knew fist went flying. The bus driver finally took careful note of his bus for the first time. He slowed to pull over abruptly and with a jerk of the bus and a fist in the air I was punched in the eye by the kid who loved Eminem. No one was allowed to stand on the bus again.

I can't remember much of the aftermath because this was so long ago, but I do remember him changing quite a bit after. Going from a constant red-faced angry boy to a more flushed toned when near me. Constant 3rd grade flirt on the playground.

Ever play Jail? Cops and robbers anyone? I had a park across the street from my elementary school with a curved rock climbing wall. This was hollowed on the opposite side creating a cave-like area that was notoriously known as our jail. It was like a little cult of us who always played the game. It gave boys an excuse to chase me and I loved it.

It's like tag but with teams and once you are caught you get put into our makeshift jail. Boys were notorious for sneaking out. Girls were notorious for the refusal to go into the jail itself. Half of them sitting and being dragged in. I think they just wanted the boys to touch them.

Now I was a fast kid. I didn't know at the time but I loved to run. It was hard to catch me, which is what I believe attracted the red-faced kid and my very lovely friend S. Red faced kid was always sweaty, and if he caught me, I gave him a bit of a hard time going into the jail solely because I didn't want to be touched by sweaty hands.

S was an unnoticed kid who's name I didn't know until later on. He was the only kid who could catch me every time he set his mind to it. In fact, if someone was trying to catch me and couldn't they would call him over to do the job.

I didn't give him a hard time. I let him take me away. Allowing him to hold my hands behind my back to lock me away. I walked with whatever grace I may, or may not, have had in the 3rd grade. He would have to stand 'guard' of the jail if I was in there too in case I decided to run out. This didn't bother me I loved the attention it gave me from not just him but other guys coming to stand guard also.