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EVERYBODY’S DANISH – END OF TRINITY LUTHERAN
By fred | May 28, 2009
I will bet you are sick and tired of reading about Trinity Lutheran German School. Had to get it out of my system – the worst three years of my young life. We will end up with – a differance in Bible study that I have little memory of – the “WHY’s” —and then how that bastard David got even with me for stealing his girl away from him – let’s rephrase that – David thought she was his girl, I doubt that she ever did.
Next time – in Everybody’s Danish we will arrive at John H. Francis Polytechnic High School, the BEST THREE YEARS OF MY YOUNG LIFE- it will be a long journey, I hope you stick around.
A DIFFERENCE IN BIBLE STUDY!
At the prison that was Trinity Lutheran German School, for three years we studied the Bible, from start to finish. We had to be able to recite the Ten Commandments by heart, along with all the books of the old and new Testaments. All of the followers of Jesus had to be known, the Lords Prayer, all sorts of stuff, then through we had to start all over.
The third year, my last year at Trinity German Lutheran school, I had to take Confirmation classes at our Danish Lutheran Church. I knew it all, our pastor was a terrific guy, Reverend Jesult (I may have the spelling of his name wrong). However one day we got into a discussion about some chapter or passage in the Bible, and he said, “No, oh no, Fred, God is a loving God, we don’t teach it that way.” I can’t for the life of me remember what it was I said, however much of the stuff at Trinity was not about love, but about hell and damnation, about if you screwed up in life. Not much about love and forgiveness as I remember. I remember our pastor asking me an awful lot of questions.
Mom was in the church choir and the next week after choir practice he asked Mom to stay for a chat. Well, the outcome of that chat was that he and Mom went over to Trinity and talked to the principal, Mr. Dankworth.
For most of that last year, I was excused from the first hour of lessons, the Bible class, much to the dismay of our teacher. I was to sit at my desk and be quiet as usual, read other lessons, but never was I asked to recite or take part in the Bible class. Mom questioned me at home each day about this.
This was all right as far as I was concerned. I wish I could have remembered the whole thing. Somehow the way the Bible as presented to me by our wonderful, very gentle pastor, was in conflict with the way that Trinity German Lutheran School taught the Bible. It was too much for him, and he was not going to let a member of his church be influenced in that manner. Mom evidently agreed with him, and that was that.
DAVID PAID ME BACK FOR TAKING HIS GIRL
The last thing I remember about Trinity, was David getting back at me, he did a good job, during most of my life and especially now in my elder years I have had pain from degenerative deterioration of the lower back due to him. My doctor, Doug Wynne told me that I am lucky, he figured from looking at X-rays ten years ago that I would be in a wheel chair by now, however somehow it went into remission for awhile. I much prefer a little pain and be able to walk, than a lifetime in a wheelchair.
David started the ruining of my back, of course getting set on my butt a few times as Poly High’s hot shot running back did not help matters any, I remember seeing stars a few times when I was set down hard by a defensive back that had murder on his mind.
I was invited to a birthday party, David’s birthday party. Now I know darn well that the only reason I was invited was because I was going with Helen. She would not go if I did not go. It was David’s birthday party, and you can be sure he wanted me there like a sore tooth.
The party was held in his back yard, there were chairs set on a cement drive going into the garage, tables on the cement driveway, with punch, and cake, and all sorts of candies, and chips. I remember walking behind Helen to get a plate of cake and ice cream, and some punch. I remember both hands were full, and I went over to sit on my chair, when I sat down the chair wasn’t there.
I sat down right on my tailbone on that cement. I saw stars, the tail bone felt numb, I had ice cream, cake, and punch all over my pants, and then David is laughing having so much fun. He had pulled the chair out from under me as I tried to sit down. His mother was mad as hell at him, worse for him, Helen was madder than a wet hen. Me? I was awful pissed, but more concerned about myself, I just could not get up, it hurt like hell to move, I was half bent over.
David’s mother and dad drove me home, Helen said she would be O. K. she would go home on the streetcar by herself. The next day it was worse, so darned stiff and sore I could hardly stand. Mom took me to the doctor and X-rays were taken. The cement, the sitting down so hard had bent my spine, the doctors gave us some pain medicine and said that a board should be put under my mattress, and that I should stay on my back in bed for at least a month.
After three days I was a basket case, a young active teenager confined to bed, it was awful. Mom knew it was not going to work. We had an old chiropractor down the block, a good customer in our store, so she made an appointment with him. I remember the pain of getting dressed, getting into the car, and then getting into his office. X-rays were again taken; yes the spine was bent, damaged. The old chiropractor had a different cure in mind. He said, “Fred, try to walk as much as you can, I know it will hurt, hurt a lot, but try to walk all you can.” Good advice, at the end of three weeks I could run, not fast, but run. The back still ached a lot but I was active, not driving poor Mom nuts, I was back in school again.
I told David he was a no good son of a bitch, and that I was going to kill him when my back was better. I really think I had David scared – he apologized time and time again. Saying, “Gee, Fred, I was just kidding around, I never wanted to hurt you that bad.”
Well, I never did ‘kill’ him, the doctors said I may have trouble in my later years and they were right. I ‘numbed’ with stars and shooting pain in the back several times after that playing football, I know you aren’t supposed to go backwards in football, but getting tackled, a wrong block, things don’t always happen as planned. Never however, was anything as bad as that first time.
To tell you the truth I almost felt sorry for that fat slob, David. He really was in love with Helen I think he worshiped her. I guess one of Helen’s attractions to me was taking her from David. I know that is not nice, but I am afraid it is the truth. I took her away from him; at least that was his thinking.
Helen was my buddy, a friend, because of Helen I learned how to act and talk to a girl – however I knew that there was no spark on my part, no real spark for the lady, the sex thing, as a kid, a young male, some girls, they may not be the most beautiful by some overall standard of beauty but one look is all you need and the hormones start to pop.
Maybe this is the reason that there cannot be any real standard of beauty – some guys are hot for a thin girl, others for a gal with a bit more meat on her bones. Another guy thinks an over endowed breast is hot, others do not, but a guy knows, almost by a glance what will turn him on. I remember a tiny strawberry blonde I went steady with in high school, we are still friends. I am sure she will laugh now that we are both elders when I say, I took one look at her and the hormones popped. To me she was unbelievable, as hot as they come, heck she still is I am sure.
I stopped calling Helen, when I started at Poly High she went to Manual Arts high school. Guilt, yes, I felt guilty as hell, but as young as I was I knew the longer it lasted the harder it would be for her if she had any feelings for me, which she seemed to have, and for me to break it off. She called several times but I always told her I had something else to do. I hope that she forgave me, but it just wasn’t in the cards. With other girls at Poly sparks would really fly, and when I pursued Sally, I knew that was it. Sparks did fly, just looking at her.
The next year I was to go to John H. Francis Polytechnic High School, an adventure that I am thankful for every day of my life. A completely different life, one of excitement, of challenge of true friends by the score, guys you could trust and die for, of love and ladies, where if you played hard you were rewarded, not penalized. Poly High to me was a magic world of buddies that admired your athletic ability, of beautiful girls, as nice in looks as they were in mind and every other way, where you could learn and still have some fun.
The bulk of my friends now, both guys and gals, the close ones, the ones that you can disagree with, fight with, argue with, but they will stick with you, care for you, the glue that binds has aged by almost 60 years of friendship, it will never break. All are from those three magical years of my life at Poly High. So different from my three-year prison that was Trinity German Lutheran School.
Till then, Love ya all Uncle Fred
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