Damsel-In-Distress Syndrome
Wade Phillips had an auspicious start in life. His parents loved him beyond measure and doted over him as most caring parents do. However, as a toddler at the age of two, his father died in an industrial accident at the textile mill where he worked. His mother was devastated and ended up working two jobs to make ends meet but a heart attack claimed her less than a year after losing her husband. Many believed she died of a broken heart. With no other close family members who could take him, the three-year-old ended up as a ward of the State at the local Woodmere Orphanage. Woodmere, located in an impoverished county, wasn't large enough to support its own grade school, so the twenty or so orphans attended the local public schools.
At the time, Wade was the youngest ward of the orphanage. The others were in upper grades, so when he started school, he had no friends from the orphanage who attended class with him that could take him under their wing. He soon learned that he was an outcast, different than his schoolmates. The orphanage kids were all looked down on by others. They weren't dressed as well. Everything he wore was a hand-me-down or a charitable donation. The local town masonic lodge helped support Woodmere's residents by supplying Christmas gifts and sponsoring celebratory summer bar-b-cues. But school kids can say and do the cruelest things and Wade was victimized at every opportunity, bullied, and picked on during his formative years.
His plight soon toughened him both physically and mentally. He could scrap with the best of them and most often came out on top when picked on or attacked. He learned to ignore the verbal barbs and tendered the
'sticks and stones'
saying to inform any verbal bully that he wasn't playing their game which frustrated their efforts. But if someone pushed him or started anything physical, he was only too eager to give back as good, if not better, than he received.
Wade pretty much kept to himself and did his own work. Very few had any desire to hang out with him but everyone knew who he was and respected his fists.
It was nearing the end of his sixth-grade year in school, one afternoon while heading for the school bus stop he came upon a quasi-familiar scene as he rounded the corner of a building. A girl, younger than himself was in distress. Two well-known bullies had thrown her books to the ground and were harassing and groping her. Another younger kid must have tried to come to her aid because he was lying on the ground bleeding from the mouth and crying.
Ordinarily, Wade would have passed on by not bothering to interfere because the girl was not from the orphanage. But something inside him compelled him to insert himself into the situation.
"What's goin' on here?" Wade asked emphatically.
"We're just having some fun is all, none of your business anyway so just keep goin'." One of the bullies insisted.
Wade knew both of the bullies and had fought both of them before, but never together. Still, he couldn't just walk away. Seeing the smaller boy beaten on the ground inflamed his anger.
"Why don't you pick on somebody your own size? You cowards so chicken you have to pick on little kids and girls now?" He injected.
"There's two of us; what do you think you can do about it?" Offered the bullies with fists raised threateningly.
Without saying another word, Wade charged into both boys swinging and flailing for all he was worth. He'd never taken on two at once before and had no idea whether or not he could lick them both, but he never let them know that. A crowd soon collected and the onlookers encouraged the fight. Wade's wild swing unintentionally flung his fist into the throat of one of the bullies and he went down immediately. That evened the odds considerably and he made short work of the other bully quickly. They both quickly rose and ran away from further confrontation.
Wade picked up the girl's book bag and handed it to her. She thanked him and helped the little boy get up and they brushed each other off, thanked him again, and walked away. The little boy couldn't take his eyes off Wade. He'd never witnessed such a selfless act and it made quite an impression on the young lad.
Wade was aware that he'd been born on the wrong side of the tracks, having been raised on the poor side of town. Hardships and struggling were all he had ever known. Three-fourths of the town was comprised of mill village row houses and scattered trailer parks, barely meeting the necessities of life and affording few luxuries. The north side of town is where the wealthy mill owners, store owners, and the rich resided. Their names were always in the local newspapers lauded as generous benefactors to this cause or that, seldom accomplishing anything of real value.
Wade struggled with the school assignments and tests and barely squeaked by. However, when he made it to the eighth grade in junior high school, he had Mrs. Crenshaw, an elderly lady, for math. One day she asked him to come back to her class after school which caused him to believe he was in serious trouble. After school, he stopped back by as directed.
"Thank you, Wade, for coming to see me. If you miss your bus, I promise to get you back where you belong. Please have a seat."
"Yes, ma'am. Am I in trouble? Did I do something wrong?" He timidly implored.
"Absolutely not, young man. I take it that you do not remember me, do you?" The elderly woman inquired.
"Not before coming to this school, no ma'am. Have we met before?" He appealed.
She gave him a big smile and said, "I used to bounce you on my knee up until your mother passed away."
"Did you know my mother?" He anxiously asked with interest.
"I knew both of your parents, dear. My husband and I lived in the house next door and we were good friends. You were the most adorable and loving child and I always loved spending time with your family before...before the tragedy." She pained.
"Wow. I never met anyone who knew my real parents before. What were they like?" He asked with fascination.
"Bernard and Alice Phillips were your parents. Boy howdy did they ever love you! No parent cared for their child more. You were their whole world." Then she went on to provide details about his father's work accident that cost his life and his mother's struggle to provide for him alone in desperate times.
After talking to several others close to your father who worked with him at the mill, it came out that your father was a victim of company negligence for which your family has never been compensated. Your mother had no clue about suing nor possessed the financial resources to pursue compensation for her loss, so she tried to make up the difference with a second job. The stress and bereavement quickly took their toll on your mother and many believe that she died of a broken heart. It was so sad when you were placed in the orphanage. I tried to care for you myself but the State wouldn't allow it not being related."
Wade felt an instant bond with this benevolent teacher. She had given him more information about his past in this one meeting than he'd amassed in his entire life.
She continued. "Wade, I realize that you struggle with your work at times. I was so frustrated that I was not allowed to bring you to my home when you were orphaned but perhaps I can make up some for that now. If you can come by here every afternoon after school, I will work with you one-on-one and help bring you up to speed on all of your subjects. Is that something you might be interested in?"
"Yes Ma'am!" He exclaimed. "I'd come by every day anyway just to hear more stories about my parents even if you didn't help me!"
She chuckled at his enthusiasm and tasked herself with helping him realize the education he deserved. She hoped to improve his life for the better. She knew that a good education never hurt anyone. She worked with him daily, first teaching him the fundamentals and building from there. He was smart as a whip and just needed someone to care enough to invest time in him. She vowed to improve his confidence in himself as he began to achieve good grades and accolades.
Later that same school year, Wade came upon another damsel in distress. This was a girl he knew well because they shared several classes. Gloria Jessup was being accosted and harassed by two rich kids, Tad and Alden, the Cone brothers. Their family was the wealthiest in the county. Gloria was one of the most attractive girls in the school. Her billowing sandy-blonde locks drew warranted attention to her lovely face. She also was born and raised on the poor side of town as Wade and he wasn't about to let the rich snobs have their way with her. He forcefully pulled their hands from her arm severing their grip on their prey and stepped in between them.
"Hi, Gloria. Are these 'gentlemen' bothering you?" Wade chose his words carefully because he knew these two were well connected and could wreak havoc if they wanted to. Not wanting to incur the wrath of Tad and Alden, she said nothing but merely nodded to Wade confirming his suspicions.
"Go back where you came from, you dumb ass," Tad asserted.
"Yeah, we were here first," Alden echoed. "She's ours. You have no business interfering. We were just trying to get her attention, now beat it!"
