Perspective

As an adult I am constantly battling between which way is right, or which way is wrong. You know- the devil on one shoulder and the angel on the other. Most often, now, I choose the way that other people would view as the "right" way. Oh, but there was a time when I probably- on purpose- chose the "wrong" way, however that depends on your perspective. These times I will tell about didn't feel very wrong at the time, at least from my perspective. We were just kids being kids. Lord knows these days we would be in Juvenile Hall for such actions. I actually write referalls for this kind of stuff and some kids even get suspended. I'm just glad I got it out of my system while still in elementary school. I would have been expelled for such behavior in middle or high school. Some of you have no doubt already heard this story, or were there when it happened. Nevertheless, here is my first memory my own perspective of wrong vs. right.
There was this girl, whom I cannot remember her name, but ooohh! do I remember her face!
She was little, a slight little thing with short blonde hair done it a "twiggy" style. I'm sure you all know who Twiggy is from the 1970's. Anyway, she didn't like me for whatever reason, and if you don't like me then why would I waste my time or emotions liking you? (I was 5, what the hell did I know) She would call me names- fatty, blimp, fat albert- whatever name she decided on for that day.
As you can guess, this did not sit well with me. I had decided (on more than one occasion) that she should "pay the piper"- if you haven't guessed yet this is the part where I went a teeny bit wrong, again "perspective." Keep in mind that on the many, many, many, occasions that she was mean to me I excercized GREAT restraint and did nothing more than go home and complain or cry about it. However as most kids learn early on, that usually does nothing to solve the problem and therefore, I, as many kids before me had learned had decided to take matters into my own hands (this is where I went probably REALLY wrong)-again perspective.
One day outside our building, all the way down to the right "Twiggy" and I were having words. What kind of words we had as 5 year olds you could only imagine, "stupid" and "ugly" come to mind. We may have even said the "sh" word-you know "shut up." Anyway, I had had enough of her mindless, beligerant, as well as redundant antics. I mean how many times and how many ways are you going to tell me that you think I'm fat. I know it, you know it, we all know it, but "shut up" already (I bet I was the one who said it first).
Well the one thing a fat 5 year old, bigger than the rest of her peers girl, has on her side is muscle! She could take me down with her words, of which I had no shortage of either, but what's the fastest way to get little "twiggy" to "shut up?" Well, a quick blow to the stomach by way of my fist I say! And that is just what I did- it felt good for all of 5 seconds, and then I ran home to hide in the bathroom. I should have listened to the angel on my shoulder telling me to bite my tongue once again, but I couldn't hear her over the sounds of "twiggy" and I shouting at each other.
The next thing I know I hear crying, only to peak out the window and see "twiggy" being carried in the arms of her mother- it now reminds me of the scene from Forrest Gump where he is carrying his friends out of the jungle one by one. How pathetic she looked- and desperate. I mean, come on! I didn't hit her that hard! That little cry baby tattle tale was REALLY milking this one! Doesn't she know that crying and whining doesn't work? Oh, wait a minute, it works for her now doesn't it?
Well I'll take my punishment like a man any day over being treated like someone who can't defend herself- (or has to be carried down the sidewalk by her mother like she has been injured in battle- YUCK!) I actually remember rolling my eyes while looking out the window that day all the while knowing the music I would face. What does that say about me? I don't know, I guess that depends on your perspective.