But I made a promise

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Even though I'm not supposed to be writing, but dealing with the realities of Real Life (as if!), my muse has me firmly gripped by the throat. Therefore I offer a small something for your amusement:

But I made a Promise...

by Penny Lane

A tiny scenario it's possible many of us could wish might have happened to ourselves...

"Sylvester! What is in those bags? Where are you going with them?"

"I'm getting rid of all my football things, Ma. I don't want them cluttering up my room any more. I'm sending the clothing and equipment to a charity shop, the rest will get recycled or go in the trash."

"What? But you worked years to make the team, and win those trophies. Don't tell me you're going to throw out those trophies!"

"I worked years to get on the team because that's what Pa wanted, Ma. Actually, I don't particularly like playing football. Now I'm eighteen, I've decided to have a clear out before I go to college. Oh, and mind that pile of books. I'll take them down to Lenny's house later on. He's more into that sort of thing than I am."

"Don't like playing football? What do you mean? Your father sweated to get you onto that team, and I promised him on his death-bed that I'd stand behind you until you became established. Now you tell me you didn't want to do it?"

"Never did, Ma, but it was impossible to argue with Pa, you know that."

"What are these books, anyway... football manuals, annuals, yearbooks, programs. Sylvester, you're throwing your childhood away!"

"Good riddance."

"Wait a minute. Your Bible, prayerbooks, pamphlets! What are you getting rid of those for? What are you going to do in church if you haven't got a prayerbook or hymn book?"

"Not going any more, Ma."

"Oh yes you are! Just try and stay home, you'll see! What kind of nonsense is this?"

"I'm eighteen, Ma. I'm legally an adult, and I can decide for myself whether I want to go to church, or football, or anything. I'm not going to sit and listen to any more of Reverend Stevens' hypocritical garbage. I'm going to take the time to do some research and find out what I want to believe in, rather than have someone else's crazy ideas stuffed down my throat."

"I'll not have the ungodly live in my house! Just you think about what you're doing!"

"Do you really think this is being done on the spur of the moment? I've been thinking about doing this most all of my life. I'll be going off to college in a few weeks, anyhow, so you won't have to put up with me for much longer."

"I promised your father I'd bring you up right, made sure you followed the path, gave you every opportunity... and this is how you repay me."

"You made a promise to him. Nobody asked what I wanted. Every parent has to let go of their child, Ma, and let them go and start to live by their own decisions. Some of the things you've asked me to do have been good, some of the things you've made me do have been bad, and there are some things that were just terrible. Well, it's time I learned to make my own mistakes. If you'll excuse me, I have to put these bags outside."

"Sylvester Schwarznegger McArthur Smith! You get back here and put those bags back in your room! This discussion isn't finished!"

"Yes it is, Ma. Yes it is. I'm eighteen, these are my possessions, and I can do what I like with them. Oh, and the stupid name is going, too. In the future, you can call me Madelaine."

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Comments

I'd think...

...that her old name alone would be enough to drive her over the edge. :-)

Who among us hasn't been forced to play some team sport that we secretly (or not so secretly) hated? I still despise hockey, thirty years after the fact.

Nice story.

Or

NoraAdrienne's picture

forced to attend a Boy Scout meeting where you are humiliated, beaten and then asked to leave as you wouldn't fit into the group.

So....!

I wasn't the only one treated like that at Boy Scouts!

Diane

Somewhat similar

I was ignored when we had the weekly scout meeting and when we went to summer camp if it was jamboree style camping I would be put on cooking and cleanup for almost every meal. All because I was poor and acted differently than the others in my churches boy scout troop. Now I have finally admitted to myself that I'm female and started transition and wish I could go back and start when I was younger.

Randi

Randi

Delightful

laika's picture

I guess I can see the rationale for the prohibition against writing, TG fiction can be a bit of a vicarious life for some of us ("Nope, can't take the trash out. Chapter 37 of CHEERLEADER DIVA just got posted, I've been watching the front page for hours waiting for this to show up-") but still it's a tough thing ask a writer to give up for Lent & I'm glad you transgressed. This was a flawless little gem of a story.

Still laughing over that name! Would make a fun contest, the most ridiculous gender reinforcing name...
Ghengis Khan Godzilla Studley Mann.

~~~hugs, Laika

Honest mistake.

Under its influence there were his/her parents. They fairly and sincerely thought, that Sylvester is happy. He, not wishing to disappoint them,(especially sick father) conscientiously played this role.
But any performance once comes to an end. This has ended also.
P.S. Here gold words: "Every parent has to let go of their child, Ma, and let them go and start to live by their own decisions".These words need to be known and remembered to any parent.

Every Child Has to Do It !

But ususlly not quite so boldly and suddenly as this!

Made me feel quite good really, as whilst I am sure I let my own kids down at times, when they got to 18 I told them that now my job as parent was over, to call me by my given name from now on and not by my old job title, and that if they wanted to have nothing more to do with me, fine, but if we were to be friends I would like that very much, but between adults please.

We are good friends still, and help each other a lot too. That was over 40 years ago now, and being friends is so good. So I think I got that bit right...

Briar

Briar

I'm hoping for Madelaine

Andrea Lena's picture

...that she's got a full-ride to Penn State, or better yet, Vassar. Mumsy might hasten her departure...no wait...she couldn't stand up to hubby, so we can relax until the Trailways bus pulls in at the depot and your girl gets to start the next chapter of her new life.
And all my love for everything else, mi sorella!

She was born for all the wrong reasons but grew up for all the right ones.
Tutto il mio apprezzamento, cari, Andrea

  

To be alive is to be vulnerable. Madeleine L'Engle
Love, Andrea Lena

Sylvester who?

ALISON

Penny,a lovely little essay and a change from your norm
but I loved it and some of the comments you have had.
Most of you would be too young to remember a pretty boy
movie star back in the 50's called Robert Taylor .His
parents must have hated him as they called him Arlington
Spangler Brough-----no wonder he changed his name !!!
Bring on Madelaine !!

ALISON

Promises Promises

terrynaut's picture

I love the story. It's very short, to the point and cute.

That poor girl's name! It's true what another reader wrote. That name is enough by itself to start the purging. Bleah.

Thanks for the story!

- Terry

But I made a Promise

What a great starter, I almost did the same thing back when I moved out on my own several, several, several years ago now. But not quite that way. I was in love with a Hermaphrodite that my Dad had said some very nasty remarks about, she commited suicide at Seventeen because of people making those same type remarks and she was one beautiful person. Richard

Richard

Haha!

That was a fun bit of flash fiction. I was trying to find your author page, but wound up reading this instead... LOL.

I wish I'd been able to pull something like that when I was 18... But I was still firmly in hiding from myself...

Honestly, my parents don't deserve much more than common decency from me due to my obligations to repay them for their fulfillment of their obligations towards me... They don't actually seem to care about me, and I'm getting sick of getting tugged around.

Not that I can do much about it right now... I have no way to support myself. If I'd only done things sooner...

Abigail Drew.

Was there ever a Sylvester

Schwarznegger McArthur Smith? No, it was always Madelaine who has chosen to be herself at any price.

    Stanman
May Your Light Forever Shine

Stealing the key / BOOM!!

Aljan Darkmoon's picture

The key to every young adult’s cage is hidden in the master bedroom, under Mom’s pillow. No parent will voluntarily surrender the key, the child must win adulthood by stealing it. Robert Bly got this absolutely right in his book, Iron John. The consequences of a failure to steal the key can be seen in the Bonobo apes, which are nearly extinct in the wild, and in the archaeology of dead and dying civilizations.

I can certainly picture Ma going ballistic upon Madelaine’s announcement. Ma’s sudden impact upon landing surely left a considerable mess…