Bully

We traveled back to Kansas this summer while we had a lot of extra time. It was a short, but quality visit with my husbands family.

While we were there, we went to eat at a local restaurant. I saw someone there that set the wheels in motion for a solid two months of flashbacks and memories of my childhood bully.

All the media attention to bullying had already reminded me that I hated school. Kids in my school were so mean to each other. We never saw it as bullying, but "just the way kids were" back then.

For me, there was one particular boy. He lived in my neighborhood and went to school with me from Kindergarten through graduation. Unfortunately, he was also in my class most of the time.

He was the class clown. Small in stature, he always had to have attention. He was well loved. I believe he still is. I know he is thought highly of in our home town and is a christian, family man.

But there was a time when he was my school day nightmare.

In kindergarten, he exposed himself multiple times on the playground. Good grief, where were my teachers!?! It didn't stop.

He was the one to always draw attention to me if something were out of sorts. I had bruises from home, he pointed them out and made a joke of it. I had stained or ripped clothes, he had the entire class laughing at me.

In junior high, he named my breasts. I wish that was all he had done. I was tall, he was short. He taunted, teased, touched and tortured me with humiliation as he ran around gym classes smacking me in the chest. It wasn't once or twice, it was daily. In high school, he continued the physical assault any chance he got. He shamed me in front of classmates for how I looked or dressed. He perpetuated and started rumors about me.

Honestly, I have no idea why. I also know I wasn't his only target. He picked on anyone he saw as weaker than himself.

He saw my dad beat me. He knew that my home life was awful. In his own weird way, he used to "protect" me by walking me home from school everyday. But at school, he was completely opposite.

When I saw him in July, I lost my appetite. I've had a flood of memories about him. My 25th class reunion in this weekend. I just found out about it. I don't think I would have gone anyway. I don't really have friends from my class, but I wouldn't want to see this guy again.