Throwback Thursday - The Notebooks

image from  the movie "A Christmas Story"

To clear up some confusion, the Notebook passages posted on Throwback Thursday were written by my father and found by me after he passed away. They were his attempt to tell the family history. He was in his late 80s or early 90s when he wrote them. Today's chapter:

One afternoon I was ahead of schedule to leave for the Club. Everett was leaving for school, getting ready for the afternoon session. She [ed: Doris] asked him, "Everett where's your hat?" He replied that the bully kid had taken it and threw it away as he always did. She naturally was upset and tol him go get another hat. She complained that the bully not only picked on Everett, but also had thrown a number of hats away.

So I called Everett to me. I knelt on the floor and said, "Bullies are cowards do don't be afraid of him. If he takes this hat from you. Tell him to go get it. If he refuses, do this." I showed him how to make a fist. And hit him with your right fist. If he is going to throw a punch at you block it with your left and hit him with your right fist. And I went through a short boxing lesson. Doris was mortified. Her thought was on what society would say to have the son of a father who was running a boys club that allowed his son to hit other kids. So I told her he can't go through life having other boys walk over him whenever they decided to do so. Life will be miserable for him. I looked at Everett. Don't be afraid. Stand your ground. You'll be ok. And I left to go to work.

Skip had work to get out, so on the day that i gave Everett a short boxing lesson, he stayed until closing time and we walked home together. Arriving at the house once coats were hung up. He always would ask her if anything special had happened.

Doris said, "He came home with his hat." referring to Everett. He said , Well things seem to be improving. Doris said that the boy took his hat. Everett ordered him to go get it. He refused and Everett hit him and the bully ran and got his hat.

Charlie was taken aback. He was about to say that wasn't good for a man of his position working with boys.

I said I don't think that what happened will become page one. That boy is not going home to tell his parents he got hit because he took another boy's hat and threw it away.