Your Name is...

Do you ever just randomly remember some childhood memory and think ‘That was B.S.’? I was trying to sleep (my favorite activity besides eating) and just had this thought pop into my mind.

Back in elementary school I got myself into trouble. My teacher called me up to her desk to scold me for doing something so heinous, I still can’t believe I wasn’t immediately put on America’s Most Wanted.

“You didn’t put your name on your worksheet. You wrote Fel. That’s not your name.”

This was a bit odd to me because other people in class got to use their nicknames. Angelene got to be Angie, Alexander got to be Alex, and Samuel got to be Sam. Why can't I be Fel?

“That’s not the point.”

That’s entirely the point.

”The point is that I need you to write your name on your paper so that I know it’s yours.”

If you were so confused as to whose paper it was then how did you know it was…you know what? This happened in Idaho so lets just say she was racist. She was also a little crazy. Our class had these restrictive cubicles and our teacher even admitted to us at one point she wished she could lock us in cages because too many people were getting up to get a drink of water or sharpen pencils. We were such rambunctious rascals.

It’s interesting that my first thought in that moment wasn’t the massive human rights violation committed. Though considering the current climate, it seems kids in cages is just something white people shrug and think is a part of life. It’s that I wondered how much extra work that would be for her. She’d have to individually lock and unlock each and every cage at the start of each day, then for recess, lunch and end of the school day. That’s not even taking into consideration something like a bathroom break or a fire alarm. Hell, at least with the fire alarm we would know who her favorite students in the class were and which ones were not (me). I can only hope she remembers to unlock my cage though it’s possible she’ll just leave me to die.

”Is that everyone?”

Teach, I’m still in my cage.

“Oh, well. Your people have the skin color for fire so you’ll be fine.”

I think you’re confusing sunlight and sunburns with fire and actual burns. We’re very much susceptible to that.

”It’s always gotta be about you, doesn’t it? You are so selfish.”