On Monday morning, while walking to the bus stop, Colin was approached by a trio of sixth-graders who attended the same school as he did.
They began to yell, “Hey, four-eyes, give us your lunch money!”
“Who, me?” Colin asked.
“Yes, you idiot! The trio sarcastically confirmed.
At that point, Colin realized their demanding request would be met with dire consequences, had he failed to comply.
His hesitation in handing over the lunch money, filled the bullies with intense anger.
So, they walked toward him while simultaneously punching their fist into their hand.
Their intimidating body language signaled that violence would soon erupt.
Overwhelmed by fear, he began to panic. And, since he was outnumbered, he felt defenseless amid his tormentors.
Because of Colin’s willingness to face hunger, he contested against the bullies.
Shocked by his fearless stance, the bullies became irate—violently shoving him to the ground and stealing his lunch money.
Following this horrifying experience, Colin became angry, bitter, and defiant toward his teacher, classmates, and family.
To avoid being labeled a coward, he never revealed his bullying experience.
It became his secret to protect his image.
He had always protected his younger sister, Sara, from bullies, and now he’s facing this dilemma.
Although Sara experienced one-on-one bullying, Colin was a victim of group bullying.
His desire to maintain his heroic reputation was compromised on the day he was bullied.
So, Colin internalized his anger, and started to display bullying tendencies himself.
His friendly personality shifted, and his scholarly ambition began to diminish.
Eventually, he turned into a monster by displaying a quick temper, picking fights, and having a foul mouth at school and home.
His parents contacted the teacher, Mrs. Garrison, to inquire about placing him in the school disciplinary intervention program.
Before taking drastic measures, she gave Colin countless opportunities to change, but despite receiving multiple warnings about his behavior, it was to no avail.
The teacher and principal were forced to schedule a parent-teacher meeting to discuss possible solutions.
After the meeting ended, a final decision was reached.
The adults mutually agree to punish the lad for his classroom disruptions.
Colin’s loss of recess and field trip privileges was an unfair punishment.
The abrupt enforcement of the loss of these privileges forced Colin to cooperate with his teacher’s classroom rules.
He, surprisingly, remained in compliance.
Temporarily. One week max was all he could handle.
Why?
Because complying with classroom rules was too uncomfortable, and he felt entitled to regain access to lost privileges.
He would not follow the rules, and his teacher was losing patience. Her reluctance to send Colin to the “prison” of detention stemmed from her compassion for her students.
She thought, “Maybe his behavior will change indefinitely after a two-week detention.
So, she sent him back to the detention hall, hoping for a miracle.
Once there, Colin became increasingly defensive and concluded that the teacher was showing favoritism toward him.
She tried to convince him she wasn’t picking on him,
but the shift in his behavior, inability to follow classroom rules, and refusal to change landed him in the wrong place.
On the last day of his two-week-long detention stay, he showed remorse, apologized, and vowed to be the great student, classmate, and son he used to be.
But, were these just empty promises?
Was he sincere?
Could his teacher trust him now?
Had he really learned his lesson?
Colin started to change.
But did he?…