When I was about 10, I did something bad and the teacher came at me with a big strap. She said this would hurt her more than it hurts me. I wanted to make a deal with her: If she put the strap away, nobody would get hurt.
I did not say anything for fear that both of us would get hurt even more and I did not want to hurt my teacher.
Now the teachers are doing it again. They are going on strike. This will send the parents scrambling to find what to do with their kids, and the kids will be forced to occupy their time with Facebook and texting, whatever that is. It will hurt the teachers too because they will lose three days’ pay.
Three-quarters of a century since my experience with the strap, I still do not understand why teachers have to hurt others so they can get to hurt themselves.
Gerry Lepine
Summerland