"A grownup is a child with layers on." - Woody Harrelson
Peeling back the layers.
We were over in Cleveland, Texas visiting Uncle Hightower and Aunt Evelyn. They had a boy, Geary, who seemed SO much older than us and a daughter, Kim, who was only a few years older than me. Geary had an eye infection or something, There will tiny tubes of medicine all over the house. Apparently, samples. All I know is I thought those tiny medicine tubes were the cutest things I ever did see! They were prefect for little old me! Geary had so many, and surely no one would miss just one. So, I slipped one down in my white knee hi socks to near my ankle. No one would notice it lying aside my ankle bone, covered up in that sock.
Was not long, however, till we passed Mama and Aunt Evelyn. Mama, "What's wrong with your ankle?" Me, "Nothing." Mama, "Is there something in your sock?" Me,"No!" Mama, "Come here and let me see."
Oh, boy!! Talk about feeling the white hot pain of embarrassment and humiliation! And heart break that they took the cute little tube away from me. Of course, they explained to me it was medicine and I didn't need it and Geary really did. But none of that mattered. I had shamed my mama in front of Aunt Evelyn. I found out that day the criminal, outlaw life was not for me.
What about you? Ever do anything that you know shamed your parent? Ever get caught redhanded?
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| I had one. Did you? |
Barbara
One of my cousins had a Mrs. Beasley, but I never did.
ReplyDeleteThe only thing that comes to mind, though I know there were likely many more times, that I embarrassed my mama with a wrong-doing was The Daffodil Incident of 1970-something.
One of the elderly ladies of the neighborhood had beautiful daffodils growing around the base of her huge tree. I have always had an affinity for daffodils. I couldn't resist. I wanted one of them, so I plucked it. I hadn't asked her if I could. I just did it. Boy, was my mama embarrassed and upset with me. She made me take it back to the lady and apologize. The lady was very kind about it. I never picked another one of her flowers again. I was ashamed for picking her flowers without asking.
I know there is something better than flower picking in my repertoire, but that's all that I can remember at the moment.
Does thinking about that incident with the medicine still make you feel ashamed at this point? Or, do you just chalk it up to one of those things that children do? I don't think it is an uncommon thing, really.
Have a great day!
No, I don't feel any shame over it any more. I personally think feeling that way and having that experience at a relatively young age may have kept me from trying some worse farther down the line. I never wanted to repeat that humiliation.
DeleteI understand completely. It is quite upsetting when we disappoint or embarrass our parents, something that we never want to do again.
DeleteHave a blessed day!
I shamed my dad. It was my early teens and I was hanging out with the wrong friends. They thought it was fun to steal. Not because they needed it, but because of the thrill. So they encouraged me. So I put a big bag of candy in my jacket and walked outside to meet the security guard. My dad had to come down to the store. Fortunately, they didn't press charges or anything but I was banned from the store for life. Of course, I never went. Mostly because it was in a part of time I rarely visited. But to this day I think back when I too realized that a life of crime was not for me. I often wonder how hilarious it would be 30 years later to walk into the store and have security stop me at the door, shaking their heads no and baring entrance. Kids do stupid things for sure.
ReplyDeleteI think we were the lucky ones for getting caught and realizing we didn't like that feeling that way.
DeleteMy twin sister and I were very small when we were young (born premature) so my mother was really worried about us going to playgroup. She asked the ladies running it to keep an eye on us. When she came to collect us one of the ladies called her over. Apparently there was no need to worry. The playgroup has a trampoline with a hand rail and we had taken a liking to it. One of us would bounce up and down on it while the other kept everyone else away with menaces. My mother was mortified. Luckily for us we were so small and adorable that most people thought it was hilarious - not allowed, but still hilarious :).
ReplyDeleteTasha
Tasha's Thinkings | Wittegen Press | FB3X (AC)
Made me smile. I can just see a couple of cute little patooties holding all these bigger and older kids at bay.
DeleteWhen I was about 14, my mother waited in the car while I went into the drug store to have a prescription filled for her. While the pharmacist filled the prescription, I saw the boxes of Thayer's Slippery Elm Throat Lozenges. I used to eat them like candy. I wanted a box but had no money, so rather than going back out to the car and asking for the cost of the cough drops, I slipped a box into my pocket. The pharmacist returned and kept me there for a couple of minutes, asking about my mom's health, the rest of my family, etc. He was so nice, I felt extremely guilty for stealing from him! I never got caught, but felt horrible.
ReplyDeleteThankfully, your conscience taught you a lesson right then and there!
DeleteA friend talked me into taking a little empty perfume bottle that she found in a counter in the back of a store. There was a whole box of them and all were empty so I guess it wasn't too serious but I just couldn't do it and took it and put it back. We could have got by with it, in fact I guess she kept hers because there were no clerks back there at the time.
ReplyDeleteYou felt the wrongness of it and let your conscience guide you to the right decision!
DeleteNope, never done it.
ReplyDeleteEvalina, This and that...
Bravo! You didn't have to experiment to find out where you stood!
DeleteIt's the times I didn'the get caught that stay with me. Not that they were all unnoticed
ReplyDeleteAh-ha! So even though you didn't get caught red handed, you learned your lesson. Smart girl!
DeleteI was such a timid child I wouldn't dare. I'm more of a shame to them now...
ReplyDeleteI just can't picture you being a "shame" to anyone!
DeleteMy great grandmother used to tell me about a special Easter dress she bought me when I was about two. I got sick and messed it and she kinda swatted me. I looked at her and said, "Oh, Nanny...why did you do that?" She said she nearly crumbled at that query and swore she'd never do that again. And she never did.
ReplyDeleteCherdo
Cherdo on the Flipside
"Favorite Characters, Favorite Lines" on the A-to-Z Challenge 2016
Can't you just imagine how your little face broke her heart in that moment?!
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