Left to right handed

[mcgrewd]

My Mother dropped me off at Knightsville Elementary school in Knightsville, SC. She walked me down the hallway and watched me walk into my new classroom. I saw all the other kids and thought that this going to be a lot of fun. Almost immediately the teacher began telling us that there were rules. We had to sit in our seats unless given permission to get up. Basically, we had to have permission to do almost anything. It was still fun, even though she wanted us to be quiet we managed to whisper. A few days later, once we were beginning to settle down, it was time to start learning to write.
The teacher had a wooden stick, like a ruler, but a little thicker. She carried it with her everywhere she went. We had already witnessed its use when one of our classmates did not have permission. Our teacher wanted to know if any of us could write out names. I saw a few hands raise and I raised mine also. She was giving us a chance to shine. My Dad and I had spent the entire summer learning to write my name. The teacher walked around and allowed us to show her that we could write our names. One at a time and eventually she got to me. I picked up the pencil and crack the pencil went flying through the air and landed on the ground. She had hit me on the hand with the stick. I thought that my little hand was broken, it hurt so much. There was a red mark on it. I barely notice, because mostly I remember hearing the laughter of the other children. She picked up the pencil and told me to try again. I reached for the pencil with my left hand again, she raised the stick and I quickly pulled my protesting hand back for protection. She said, use your other hand. I tentatively picked up the pencil, clumsily, with my right hand while watching that stick very, very carefully. I tried to write my name, but could not even make out what I had just written. She went to the next kid.
The next few days were the same, raising the stick whenever I tried to pick up a pencil with my left hand. I had wasted an entire summer. I had to learn all over again. I was very frustrated.