M
When I was a junior in high school, I got punched in the face by a girl named Kristin.
The whole fiasco started in the middle of the day, at lunch time, when this girl (someone who lived a block away from me...we'd grown up together and been friends for years up until the previous summer) filled an empty water bottle with vodka. I can only imagine that she must have felt pretty proud of herself, sitting there in her afternoon classes, getting wasted. By the time the bell rang at the end of the day, she was completely sloshed.
I didn't know any of this until I had started down the sidewalk in front of the school to walk home, and I suddenly felt somebody pulling on my backpack.
Kristin wrapped an arm around my neck and tripped over her own feet and asked me to help her get home. She explained, in a fit of giggles, what she'd done, and that she was afraid the cops would drive by and see her stumbling down the street, so could I just hook my arm through hers and help her stay upright?
I tried to help her. We had almost a mile to walk, though, and even with my help she was swerving all over and falling down. We made it half way to my house before a woman pulled up in a pick up beside us and asked if we were ok. Kristin tried to pull me along so I wouldn't rat her out, but then she fell down and started laughing, and I told the lady that yes, everything was fine, but thanks for asking.
Two blocks later, we were picked up by a police officer.
Kristin lost it- she was screaming at the officer, and at me, calling me a lot of horrible names and accusing me of having called the cops on her (pretty reasonable assumption, considering I had no phone...). She was still raging at everyone as we entered the police station and were lead to a conference room and seated at a long table. The officer asked us to explain what was going on. I told him, while Kristin was hissing threats and warnings and curse words at me. When I got to the part about the woman stopping and asking if we were alright, Kristin called me a liar and socked me in the jaw- she was still convinced that I had called the cops.
Of course the police called our parents; I was in no trouble, and Kristin was grounded for three months. She called me to apologize for punching me, but I could hear her dad in the background telling her she'd better say it or she'd be grounded another month.
I was just trying to help...I didn't want her to be in trouble, I just wanted her to get home in one piece. And I got punched in the face for it.
So that was a fun day.
But the point I'm taking forever to get to is this:
Life is chock-full of situations like this- all we're trying to do is help someone, or be their friend, and we get a metaphorical punch in the face as our "thanks". It's frustrating when it happens, and sometimes it really stinkin' hurts. It can be really hard to shake it off and forgive people, and unfortunately I think a lot of times, it causes us to build walls, and to avoid stepping in to help or be a friend again. Why take the risk of getting hurt if you don't have to? Why help somebody who is just going to turn on you and throw it in your face?
So I guess my question is...how do you handle situations like that?
The whole fiasco started in the middle of the day, at lunch time, when this girl (someone who lived a block away from me...we'd grown up together and been friends for years up until the previous summer) filled an empty water bottle with vodka. I can only imagine that she must have felt pretty proud of herself, sitting there in her afternoon classes, getting wasted. By the time the bell rang at the end of the day, she was completely sloshed.
I didn't know any of this until I had started down the sidewalk in front of the school to walk home, and I suddenly felt somebody pulling on my backpack.
Kristin wrapped an arm around my neck and tripped over her own feet and asked me to help her get home. She explained, in a fit of giggles, what she'd done, and that she was afraid the cops would drive by and see her stumbling down the street, so could I just hook my arm through hers and help her stay upright?
I tried to help her. We had almost a mile to walk, though, and even with my help she was swerving all over and falling down. We made it half way to my house before a woman pulled up in a pick up beside us and asked if we were ok. Kristin tried to pull me along so I wouldn't rat her out, but then she fell down and started laughing, and I told the lady that yes, everything was fine, but thanks for asking.
Two blocks later, we were picked up by a police officer.
Kristin lost it- she was screaming at the officer, and at me, calling me a lot of horrible names and accusing me of having called the cops on her (pretty reasonable assumption, considering I had no phone...). She was still raging at everyone as we entered the police station and were lead to a conference room and seated at a long table. The officer asked us to explain what was going on. I told him, while Kristin was hissing threats and warnings and curse words at me. When I got to the part about the woman stopping and asking if we were alright, Kristin called me a liar and socked me in the jaw- she was still convinced that I had called the cops.
Of course the police called our parents; I was in no trouble, and Kristin was grounded for three months. She called me to apologize for punching me, but I could hear her dad in the background telling her she'd better say it or she'd be grounded another month.
I was just trying to help...I didn't want her to be in trouble, I just wanted her to get home in one piece. And I got punched in the face for it.
So that was a fun day.
But the point I'm taking forever to get to is this:
Life is chock-full of situations like this- all we're trying to do is help someone, or be their friend, and we get a metaphorical punch in the face as our "thanks". It's frustrating when it happens, and sometimes it really stinkin' hurts. It can be really hard to shake it off and forgive people, and unfortunately I think a lot of times, it causes us to build walls, and to avoid stepping in to help or be a friend again. Why take the risk of getting hurt if you don't have to? Why help somebody who is just going to turn on you and throw it in your face?
So I guess my question is...how do you handle situations like that?
