The Time All Hell Broke Loose

Primary School was a scary time for all of us, we were thrown out into the big wide world and were left to fend for ourselves for the first time in our young lives.  You didn't have any friends and you weren't quite sure how to make them. You were dropped off at school with your superhero lunch box and left to to your own devices with your only guardian being a teacher that was more concerned with how many cups of coffee she could consume then your well-being and in my case she couldn't even be bothered to pronounce my name correctly.

"Wayston...is Wayston here"....I turn around looking for a Wayston, once I realise shes talking to me I reply "nahh you kind of just say it how its written miss", "Raston...is there a Rassssston...?" she shouts,  sigh..."fine it's raston, rastons here". Oh the joys of growing up in a white school......"Why are you black?"...."Does your poo come out white?" All questions faced on a daily basis.



The infants were all well and good but when you hit the junior playground, that when s**t really got real, all bets were off, children were taller, fatter and more ignorant. During school days there was a clear hierarchy and respect was predominantly achieved by age and my, my, my did the teachers make you aware of it, it seemed before you were recognised as an individual you had to be in Year 6. The monitors were all in year 6, the year 6's got a prom, the year 6's even got to sit on an elevated platform. They were the top of the food chain and didn't they know it.

I'll never forget those chilly mornings as we (year 3's) rustled uncomfortably with our legs crossed on the solid vinyl flooring, (we knew we couldn't get comfortable but it was worth a try) looking behind us to see the year 6's perched on wooden benches staring down their smug noses at us like we were mere peasants.

There was a natural order of things; the year 3's were afraid of the year 4's, the year 4's were afraid of the year 5's and so on. But on one winter afternoon, the rule book was thrown out the window, nobody was safe, it was prison rules. For what happened on this glorious day nobody could have foreseen. Some say it should never have happened, some say the dinner ladies should have seen it coming, some say it should have been wet play.  It was on this day that I realised the impact that words could have upon a human being and ultimately the strength of a 10 year old.

Upon hearing this insult it was as if the gates of hell had been opened and a swarm of locusts had been sent to annihilate the junior playground leaving no skipping, sponge football or hula hoop free from desecration. All had been calm up until this moment and it was business as usual, each year group had there own designated area of their playground that they played in acceptingly.

At the time of this incident I was deeply engrossed in a match of football "West ham" vs "Arsenal" of which I was playing as Ian Wright, my childhood hero. Just as I dribbled past my opposition and drew my puma sting AstroTurf trainer back to strike what would have certainly have been a powerful shot past a helpless goalkeeper I heard, two fatal words echo from the other side of the playground...."YOUR MUM!" The playground stood still and silence fell, you could hear your own heartbeat, I immediately stopped what I was doing and turned to the direction of the echoing voice. The calm silence was suddenly broken by a scream of rage. A year 6 boy had insulted a year 5 and rather than accepting his position as an inferior he challenged it.

The scenes which ensued can only be compared to the visuals and lyrics in this video.



It was blasphemy and it was madness, but rather than taking out an army of Persians, he took out a entire year group single handedly. He didn't discriminate either, boys were thrown on their backs, girls tossed to the floor, he took out dinner ladies, equipment, senior management. Anything that was unfortunate enough to cross his path was an enemy. He was a wrecking ball, bodies were hitting the floor all over the playground. I looked on from a safe distance as the madness continuued, shell shocked. Why did my parents send me to such a lawless place? I wondered as the chaos surrounded me. Hell hath no fury like a child that is on the other side of a your mum joke.

Fail safe to get out off a heated your mum joke situation

The outburst was epic, there is no denying that, but what was more shocking was the fact that he had the audacity to attack a year 6 and not only did he attack them, he destroyed them and not only did he destroy them....he survived! Amen, he survived. As a result they were all afraid of him! The year group dynamics had now shifted. School had changed forever after that incident, the year 6's were no longer untouchable. Although that child did get excluded, he did it for the bigger picture, he was an idol, a matyr some may say, he took one for the team, we were no longer scared.