Sierra received a call from her son’s school stating that he ran away from school every day after class. She demanded an explanation from him. The truth infuriated her and forced her to rush into the school.
Once again Sierra stood in front of her son’s room and felt completely helpless. For several days she had watched Lawrence come home from school in tears and she didn’t know what to do. Her husband told her to leave him alone and wait for him to come see her. But as a mother, that was almost impossible.
She wanted to knock on his door and calm him down, ask what was going on. Was it bullying in question? Did his friends do something? Sierra wanted to solve all of his problems, but she also understood that he had to learn to deal with what came with growing up.
She stepped away from his door and into the living room, looking around and sighing heavily. She put her hands down and tried to wait. Should she make his favorite nuggets with fries to cheer him up, or should she order a pepperoni pizza?
In her mind, her hair was blowing from the force of her entry and her eyes were lasing.
A phone call distracted her from these thoughts.
“Ms. Murphy, I have something important I need to talk to you about…” It was the headmistress, and she revealed that Lawrence had been escaping class every day for some time. He waited until the last bell rang, immediately got on the bus and went home.
Several people noticed his absence and the headmistress decided to follow him. She also checked a couple of surveillance cameras to get some clarity on the situation.
“That can’t be true. Lawrence is so good,” Sierra replied. Unfortunately, she wasn’t surprised because she often caught Lawrence crying after school. Something was wrong. “Don’t worry Ms. Gatto. I’ll do something about it.
She hung up, sighed again, and ran her hand through her hair. Finally she got off the couch and went into her son’s room. This time she had to intervene. He couldn’t run away from school every day and act like that. She couldn’t wait any longer for him to ask for help, either.
“Lawrence,” she said as she entered his room. Her son was curled up on his bed and her heart clenched. She sat down next to him and felt that he was sad. This wasn’t her normally happy boy. “The Headmistress called. She said you ran away from class and hid until it was time to go home?”
Lawrence sniffed, wiped his nose on the ceiling, and stood up a little. Finally he nodded and looked at his mother in tears below. Sierra tried to convince him that this was wrong, but she also wanted to tell him that he could tell her anything.
“Please just tell me what’s going on. It’s not you. You usually love school,” she urged, patting the back of his head.
Her boy’s still wet eyes met hers and he collapsed again, hugging her tightly.
“Mom! My math teacher, Mr. Wilson, constantly taunts me because I don’t understand things as quickly as the other students. He’s so mean and everyone laughs. Some guys call me an idiot for doing that,” Lawrence revealed sobbing. He described how his teacher insulted and taunted him.
Sierra listened intently, but she grew increasingly angry. Your son was ten and a grown teacher saw fit to mock him? “Oh, that’s impossible,” she thought.
Though she tried to remain calm and comforting to Lawrence, Sierra was burning with anger and her maternal feelings were about to burst. This couldn’t happen to her son!
When Lawrence stopped crying, she told him about her dinner plans, and he cheered up a little. She also said they could watch a movie with his dad – which wasn’t usually allowed on school nights – and he visibly smiled.
***
“You think that’s funny, huh? Do you think you’re a better man if you mock a little kid? Did you learn that in college? How to mock little kids who don’t understand your way of teaching!” Sierra exclaimed, charging in Mr. Wilson’s office.
In her imagination, her hair was blowing from the force of her entry and her eyes were firing laser beams. She also thought that she might have forced his office door open when she burst in and startled him.
But in reality, the door barely hit the wall, and she was just a concerned mother complaining to her child’s teacher. Even so, Mr. Wilson, who had been correcting a couple of exams, startled her when she burst in. It was clear he knew who she was, so Sierra crossed her arms and continued her tirade.
“That’s right! Lawrence is my kid and the gig is over! They mock him every day and he was so scared of going to class that he skipped class and came home crying. I await an explanation and an apology , or I’ll complain to the Department of Education! I’ll have you fired!” she yelled, not caring if she looked crazy.
Mr Wilson bubbled and didn’t know what to say after she confronted him. Before Sierra could chide him further, Principal Gatto entered the office and tried her best to defuse the situation. Sierra repeated what her son had told her, but this time she tried to do it calmly.
The principal was not happy and demanded an explanation from Mr Wilson. The math teacher stuttered a weak confession but justified it. He said he believes children study more diligently in such cases.
“This is old school reckless and outdated thinking, and I will not let an adult bully my son!” Sierra yelled, her anger returning in full force.
At this point, Principal Gatto suggested that they all take a break before the discussion became unproductive. Sierra demanded a punishment for Mr Wilson and an apology for her son. Otherwise she would contact the Ministry of Education. No one wanted it to go that far, so the Headmistress promised she would do something about Mr Wilson.
Days passed and a replacement had been hired for Mr. Wilson, encouraging Lawrence to return to classes.
Meanwhile, Mr Wilson refused to apologize to the boy, stood his ground and refused to give up his pride. This prompted Principal Gatto to fire him, and someone else was permanently hired for the job. The principal also organized workshops for teachers to discourage Mr Wilson’s behavior towards students and instituted a zero-tolerance policy on bullying, which extended to teachers and staff.
“Our students need to feel safe. That’s our priority,” Sierra heard Principal Gatto say during the parent-teacher association meeting later that month. Everyone clapped. Other parents have thanked Sierra because several children have also been bullied in class.
She was only sorry that she hadn’t acted sooner to discover her son’s problems, but she would never make that mistake again.
What can we learn from this story?
Children need to learn to reach out for help, but adults should also step in when children need help. Sierra waited for her son to make the first move, but she had to step in when the principal called. It was the right decision.
Adults can be bullies too, and it’s crucial to protect yourself and your entire family from them. Unfortunately, some people never grow up, and bullies stay bullies well into adulthood. Sierra defended her child against one and justice was served.
Share this story with your friends. It could brighten their day and inspire them.