LIFE MOVES ON THEY SAY AND I GUESS AS FAR AS DATES AND YEARS IT DOES,BUT FOR ME AND MY BROTHERS AND SISTERS LIFE SEEMED LIKE IT STOOD VERY STILL.
NIGHT AFTER NIGHT THE SAME SHOUTING SCREAMING SHOUTING.AFTER BEING PUNCHED BY MY DAD AND ACTUALLY KNOCKED OUT,I WAS A LITTLE MORE RESERVED WITH MY DETERMINATION TO STEP IN BETWEEN MY MAM AND DAD FIGHTING EVERY NIGHT HIM PISSED MU MAM SO FRUSTRATED WITH HIM AND POSSIBLY ON THE VERGE OF TOTALLY LOSING HER MIND WITH ANGER,DESPONDENCY AND ON THE VERGE I FELT OG GIVING UP ON LIFE.
AFTER LISTENING TO THIS NIGHT AFTER NIGHT,CRYING,WORRYING AND SCARED FOR MY MAMS SAFETY.
AT ABOUT 12 YEARS OF AGE I SNAPPED.THIS PARTICULAR NIGHT SOMETHING INSIDE ME DECIDED I COULD NOT JUST CARRY ON LISTEN AND ABOUT TWO YEARS AFTER MY FIRST TIME OF GETTING BETWEEN MY MAM AND DAD,RECIEVING A PUNCH TO THE FACE FROM MY DAD FOR MY EFFORTS.THIS TIME THERE WAS NO SNEAKING DOWN THE STAIRS QUIETLY IT WAS MORE LIKE A SCENE FROM BRAVEHEART AND I RAN DOWN THE STAIRS MAKING ON REFLECTION A LOUD SORT OF BATTLE SCREAM SUCH AS FREEDOM IN MY HEAD BUT I WAS FULL OF HATE,ANGER,HURT AND HE WAS NOY GOING TO PUNCH ME THIS TIME.I WAS ADAMENT,DETERMINED AND SO FOCUSSED.THIS TIME IT WAS GOING TO BE A DIFFERENT RESULT,THIS TIME I WAS GOING TO LAY HIM OUT,I WAS GOING TO SHOW MY MAM I COULD AND WILL PROTECT HER FROM THIS DRUNKEN AGGRESSIVE VIOLANT MONSTER WHO DARED TO CALL HIMSELF A DAD AND HUSBAND.
I RUSHED THROUGH THE LIVING ROOM DOOR HE WAS IN THE PROCESS OF SLAPPING MAM AGAIN,THIS WAS IT I GAVE OUT A LOUD SORT OF SHOUT SORT OF SCREAM.I RUSHED TOWARDS HIM KICKING OUT AND ARMS FLAYING THROWING PUNCHES AT HIM,I KNOW I LANDED A COUPLE ON HIS FACE,IN MY MIND I HAD WOBBLED IN BUT IN REALITY HE PROBABLY HARDLY FELT A THING LOTS OF SHOUTING MY MAM SCREAMING ME KICKING AND LASHING OUT IN HIS DIRECTION-THIS SEEMED TO GO ON FOR WHAT SEEMED LIKE AN ETERNINITY BUT WAS ONLY MOMENTS.
HE GRABBED MY ARMS VERY TIGHT TO STOP MY PUNCHES LASHING OUT HE GRABBED MY ARMS WITH SUCH FORCE HE LIFTED ME OFF MY FEET BUT I REMEMBER THE LOOK ON HIS FACE.IT WAS A MIX OF HORROR,SHOCK,AND A LITTLE FEAR THAT THIS TWELVE YEAR OLD CHILD IN HIS EYES BUT IN MY EYES A TWELVE YEAR OLD MAN WAS ACTUALLY ATTACKING HIM WITH SUCH FORCE,AGGRESSION AND YES FILLED WITH HATE.
THE GRABBING AND HOLDING WENT ON FOR A WHILE AND ONLY STOPPED WHEN ONE OF MY SISTERS CALLED C AGED TEN AND A HALF WAS STOOD SCREAMING AT THE LIVING ROOM DOOR,IN HINDSIGHT THAT IS SOMETHING I FELT REALLY GUILTY ABOUT,WAKING MY SISTER UP.
AFTER A WHILE IT SETTLED DOWN AND WE WENT BACK TO BED.THE NEXT MORNING MY SISTER C WAS SINGING MY PRAISES TO MY OTHER SISTER AND TWO BROTHERS MAKING OUT I WAS SOME SORT OF SUPER HERO-I WASNT I WAS JUST A SCARED BOY WHO SNAPPED.
IN MY BROTHERS AND SISTERS EYES I WAS NOT JUST THIER BIG BROTHER ANY MORE I WAS THIER BIG BROTHER WHO WAS GOING TO CHANGE THIER LIFE FOREVER,SOMEONE WHO WOULD STAND UP TO OURS DADS DRUNKEN BULLYING,IT WAS A HELL OF A RESPONSABILITY ON MY SHOULDERS.
SO SCHOOL AS NORMAL THE NEXT MORNING WITH MY SISTER C STILL TALKING TO ME ABOUT THE PREVIOUS NIGHTS HEROICS IN HER EYES,FOR ME I WANTED TO FORGET ALL ABOUT IT,IT WAS A TAG I COULD NEVER EVER LIVE UP TOO.
IN ASSEMBLY AT SCHOOL MR G THE DEPUTY HEAD DECIDED WE ALL NEEDED WAKING UP AND TOLS THE FULL ASSEMBLY TO WAVE THIER ARMS IN A WINDMILL MOVEMENT,MY RIGHT ARM DIDNT WANT TO AND THE PAIN AND DISCOMFORT PREVENTED ME DOING IT.ASSEMBLY FINISHED AND MR G TOLD ME TO STAY BEHIND ALONG WITH MY BEST FRIEND RUSSELL.HE ASKED ONE OF THE OTHER TEACHERS TO GO AND GET THE SCHOLL NURSE,YES THERE WAS SCHOOL NURSES IN THOSE DAYS.ON THE NURSES ARRIVAL MR G SAID WHATS WRONG WITH YOUR ARM GARGETT OR WHERE YOU JUST BEEN LAZY IN ASSEMBLY I ANSWERED I WAS BEING LAZY SIR,TAKE YOUR SHIRT OFF PLEASE GARGETT AND THE TURNED TO RUSSELL AND TOLD HIM TO HELP ME REMOVE MY SHIRT.THE LOOK ON THIER FACES ON MY SHIRT BEING OFF WAS ONE OF SHOCK AND HORROR I GUESS,WHAT HAPPENED TO YOUR ARM MICHAEL,NOT JUST MY NAME HAD CHANGED FROM GARGETT TO MICHAEL BUT SO HAD THE TONE OF THE CONVERSATION.PART OF ME WAS FILLED WITH FEAR PART WITH RELIEF WHAT EVER I SAID NOW SURELY WOULDNT MATTER,THE BRUISES ON MY ARMS WHERE OBVIOUSLY MADE BY HANDS THE BRUISES CLEARLY SHOWING SIGNS OF BEING GRABBED HARD AND VIOLANTLY SO WHAT DO I SAY,I DIDNT WANT MY MAM TO GET ANY BLAME SO I REPLIED I SLIPPED DOWN THE STAIRS SIR-SEVERAL TIMES ASKED SEVERAL TIMES THE SAME ANSWER,I KNEW THEY DID NOT BELIEVE ME AND FOR ONCE IN MY LIFE I THOUGHT FANTASTIC NOT TO BE BELIEVED.IN MY MIND I WAS CONVINCED SOMETHING AT HOME WOULD NOW BE DONE AND I COULD HOLD MY HEAD UP HIGH KNOWING I HAD NOT GRASSED UP OR REPORTED MY DAD BUT I KNEW HELP WOULD HAPPEN NOW.
MR G AND THE NURSE WHISPERED TO EACH OTHER,LOTS OF HEAD SHAKING BUT THEN TO MY SHOCK MR G SAID OK MICHAEL PUT YOUR SHIRT BACK ON AND GO TO YOUR CLASS.DISSAPOINTMENT YES BUT I WAS CONVINCED MR G WOULD NOT LEAVE IT THERE IT WAS OBVIOUS ID BEEN ASSAULTED BUT I WAS SO WRONG-NOTHING WAS DONE AT ALL-HURT AND BLAME THAT MR G ALLOWED THIS TO GO ON,I EXPECTED THE POLICE TO TURN UP AND FRIGHTEN THE LIFE OUT OF MY DAD-BUT NO,SO LIFE CARRIED ON.
FEELING DEJECTED AND SO LET DOWN IN MY MIND MR G HAD FAILED ME .SCHOOL I THOUGHT I WAS A PLACE OF SAFETY,A PLACE WHERE STRANGELY ENOUGH I COULD HIDE FROM MY DAD,A PLACE WHERE I WAS CONVINCED MY FAMILY AND MY OWN NIGHTMARES WOULD BE ENDED.
HOW THINGS HAVE CHANGED IN THE MODERN DAY WITH THE ADVENT OF SOCIAL SERVICES BEING INFORMED ABOUT THE SLIGHTEST THING.BACK THEN IT JUST WAS NOT THE DONE THING FOR SOCIAL SERVICES TO INTERFERE,IN FACT BACK THEN EVEN THE POLICE TRIED NOT TO GET INVOLVED IN DOMESTIC VIOLANCE,WOULD MY MAM HAVE PROCEEDED THROUGH THE COURTS AGAINST MY DAD-A DEFINATE NO WOULD BE THE ANSWER.
friends dont stab you in the back
mikeg12 