The Paddle, Cricket, & Me- R/L Experience
 

This is not a story about my recieving a paddling. It is the truth about my being partially responsible for someone else recieving one.
Now before I am placed on the stand and sentenced, hear me out. I grew up in the Texas school system, where Corporal Punishment abounds. It was not uncommon to hear loud smacks from the hallway outside the classroom. For those of you who read the story in the off topic forum about the coach who let me use his foot as a stool to reach the water fountain, well this is another real life account involving him.
It was my 7th grade year, third period, P.E. class. The only highlights of this class to me where; Free Fridays, tumbling, trampoline, & crunches contests. We sat alphabetically in position for roll call daily. Talking or getting out of position without permission was an automatic set of lunges in front of the class(there were over 45 of us) or 3 swats/licks. On this paticular day, the guy sitting directly behind me was doing his usual pestering and attempting to get a rise out of me when the coaches weren't looking in our direction. I could not figure out for the life of me why this guy wanted to get me in trouble. Maybe I was a little naive' back then ? Lol. Anyway, I did my best to ignore him. That worked pretty well until I felt the collar of my gym shirt pulled to the side and something dropped down the front of my shirt ! Once I felt whatever it was MOVING I was anything but quiet or still. After flailing about wildly and discovering the object was a live cricket, I all but had a fit. By now I had drawn the attention of the coach and my whole row. My last name was called rather sternly by the above mentioned coach and I stood facing him. My shirt was untucked(another big no no) and I looked as if I had already done my exercises for the day ! He asked if I would mind telling him why I was out of line and my shirt untucked ect. I was so embarressed and didn't want to look like the little tattle tale either. So I very quietly said "I had something in my shirt." He then told me to hand whatever it was to him. Uh oh. "I can't, I don't know where it went." There was a pause and then "I see, and how is it that you don't know where it went ? Did it run away ?" Lots of giggles were now heard from behind me but were quickly silenced with a mere "look" from the coach. "Yes sir, kinda...it hopped away." An uncontrolable snicker was now heard from the owner of the cricket. "What hopped away ?" My face now a deep shade of red, answered; "A cricket." I almost caught a hint of a smile but it faded fast as he asked how the cricket got in my shirt. I turned and looked directly at the clown who put it there. To my relief I was told to tuck in my shirt and get back in roll position. You could have heard a pin drop. The coach quietly motioned with one finger and said "Come with me." They walked the short distance through the open doorway to the coaches office. Shortly after, 3 rather loud smacks echoed throughout the gym. They walked back out and he was still making eye contact with me but not as smug as before. His new nickname for me the remainder of the year; Cricket.

So I take it that the licks must not have been that bad!

And "Cricket" seems to be an especially well-suited nickname for you. Perhaps we should revive it. ;)

Jiminey ;) He got what he earned. Of course it's admirable that you WOULD have kept quiet and taken the 3 yourself. ;)

After looking at this again, two questions occurred to me:



So of these 45-50 kids, most or all of whom I assume that you knew more or less, how many were paddled by the coach that year? Was it only boys who got paddled? Did any of them tell you (or a group you were in) about the paddlings, how the coach went about it, whether they were good licks or not, and so on?

I sense a few more good true school paddling stories out of this class! ;)

And it just occured to me that I'm not sure who it was that called you 'Cricket.' Was it the coach, or was it the boy who put one down your shirt?

To answer your questions RG...Of the whole class, only about 4 or 5 were paddled that year. Two of them being females and the others -males. It was the coach that called me cricket and always with a wink.