Memoir

Excurze Me

During my 1st year at my school in the inner city I found out that kids weren't allowed to have bathroom tissue in the stalls, due to how they abused it? So, throughout the day students would come up to my desk and ask for some, get this, "tishah."(I learned this was slang for tissue) It always caught me off guard. I'd have to ask twice, "what did you say?" Then they would say "I'm in a tight, I need some tishah." Another new phrase I had to interpret was the "I'm in a tight", which means I got to the bathroom BAD! I guess someone down the line they learned that their bladders get full and then "tight", or it just means they're stuck between a rock and a hard place. I've never asked how they got to this point. Well, there was a day when a couple girls randomly bust up in my art class while I was teaching. As I was in mid sentence to a small group of captivated 6th graders, which is rare! in walk Ms.Thang & Partnah. The rest went like this:

"Excurz me Mur.Coril, you got some tishah?!"

"Uhm, what did you say?"

"We need some tishah, gimme some tishah"

"Well I'm in the middle of class, and no you can not have any tissue, please get out of my class"

"Oh, Okayy, dang Mur. Coril, you ain't gotta be all hollin an stuff"

"Both of you need to get a pass and get to where you're supposed to be, I'm in the middle of class"

"Oh, I dunna know who that bi*#@ talkin too, I slap that lady in the face"

"Excuse me?! What did you say?"(I walk to the doorway)

They both just stood there, and then the girl who want to obviously show me a thing or two just peered at me like it was just about to be some fightin. In fact I asked again, "what did you say, who were you talking to?" All my 6th grade babies are sitting in silence, eyes wide open. The girl just looks at me, and I say, "you're not threatening me at school or anywhere else!" And as if I was not truly terrified, because I was, I told her to stay right there while I wrote her a form for the principal to see. Later, a few days later, the little girl had a hearing with a behavior officer. The officer decides after hearing the situation if a child is "sentenced" to alternative school. The girl never showed up, but the hearing officer did. It was like, "WHAT SHE DO?< SPEAK UP-" I felt like I was on trial, with a large, LOUD, aggressive female-ish cop like lady screaming at me. I've seen that lady three times since then and learned to be so confident and LOUD and assertive that there's no room for debate. Each time the student was sentenced to alternative school. I usually have a moment of feeling sorry for the student, but then remember that it's my only line of defense. Maybe her parents sent tishah with her to alternative school