I remember watching the old spaghetti western “The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly” and thoroughly enjoying it. Of course, the inevitable “discussion” arose between my brother and I as to which of us was the Ugly. He claimed the “first born” benefit, while I merely pointed out that his being the first born actually meant he was merely the “prototype” and that I, as the newer model, was far superior in every way. This usually lead to physical engagements of violence that only siblings can enjoy, which usually was followed by the sound of something crashing to the floor that should have remained upright and undisturbed.
Dashing from the room in different directions, believe it or not, never returned the destroyed item to its original undisturbed and upright position. All that dashing about did two things: Let my parents know we had been fighting, and that one (or more likely, both) of us were at fault.
Over the years, I learned a little trick. When my brother started preening and strutting like he were King Midas and he was untouchable, I would walk over to Mom’s lamp and give it a nudge. My brother would turn sheet white, but would sit down and act like he had some sense (for a few minutes). If he started punching me again, I would yell, “David quit touching the lamp!” and then I’d kick it off the table onto the floor. My beating ceased, and my Dad would storm into the room with THE BELT!
A word about parents….the are not as slow and ignorant or gullible as kids may think. WE learned the hard way that Dad had already worked out the scenario of the lamp and had concluded that if one of us was involved, the other of us was also involved. Thus, we both tasted the wrath of the belt.
I tell you this for a purpose: “Good Judgment Comes From Experience. Experience Comes From Bad Judgment.”
Go figure!
