The Day I Took a Gun to School
I knew not to …
????take a gun to school.
?????????It was 1951 … some things were different then.
At Russell High School in East Point Georgia, we had a World War II veteran for principal.?Colonel L. L. Deck knew how to deal with cocky, rebellious teenage boys. ??
Everyone knew Col. Deck was not easy on boys who misbehaved.?He didn’t just sit in his office giving orders. ?He was likely to show up at anytime, anywhere on the campus. ?He knew how to find us boys when we tried to hide and smoke cigarettes.?He was too smart for high school boys to out-fox him.?
In the back of my mind …?
a silent voice was saying …?
???You Know Better …?
??????Don’t Do It!
I took the gun anyway.?
My twin brothers, Ray and Roy had been arrested for pointing guns out the window of an automobile.?The police locked them up until Daddy went to the jail and got them released.?Police were tough in those days.?The twins didn’t get their guns back.?
That silent voice was saying …
???You Know Better …
??????Don’t Do It!?
I took the gun anyway.?
Charles had brought his gun to school and been showing it off.?Because he was carrying a gun, some people were avoiding him.?I knew it was risky being around him while he was carrying that gun, but that didn’t bother me.????
That silent voice was saying …
???You Know Better …
??????Don’t Do It!?
I took the gun to school anyway.
I was proud of my new pistol and wanted to show it. ?I could easily hide it in my jacket.?When Charles and I met to compare our guns, we thought we were alone but … we had not been careful enough.?
A male teacher was upon us before we even knew he was there … took our guns and … us to the principal’s office.
Charles and I knew we were in … real trouble.
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Col. Deck called us in, had us stand in front of his desk and lectured us on proper behavior.?While lecturing us, he picked up our guns and aimed them at us … several times.
He was making me … very nervous.
With a pistol in each hand, he got up, told us to go to our class and followed us out the door into the hallway.
When we had walked a few steps down the hall …
????he started chasing us …
?????????a gun in each hand …
??????????????squirting water on our backs!?
We didn’t get our guns back.
Col. Deck was an excellent teacher.?I learned a lesson I would never forget!
After this incident …
???I listened and … obeyed that silent voice …
???????You Know Better …
????????????????Don’t Do It!
Are you hearing that silent voice?
????Are you obeying it?
?????????Why not??
--- Jimmy Collins?
Note: All my stories are true, from my real-life experiences.
Like stories? My latest book?Jimmy’s Stories?is available on Amazon.?
Career advancement principles are in my book,?Creative Followership ?is also available on Amazon.???
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CPA/ Tax accountant / CGMA
1 年HI, Neighbor (from the old days) I remember Russell well. I learned many leasons there also, but I never took a gun to school.