As I was rambling through my archives of compositions I have written over the years, I ran across a short true children’s story I wrote some 75 years ago.  The theme of the story is about why Snooky (me) and Sissy (my older sister) received a spanking from our Auntie Bea.

I believe retelling this story to you is important because as I reread the actions of the characters, those behaviors conjured up interactions I have experienced during my sojourn with my Lord and Savior.  OUCH!!

Let’s begin at the beginning…

"Snooky Gets A Spanking" - A short story by the Blogger

On Your mark!  Get set!  Go!  As I raced across the soft thick blades of grass, I could feel the cool breeze slice across my forehead and cut under my chin which was tucked down into the clef of my chest.  My two arms were outstretched and flapping as if I was imitating a free-style swimmer fresh out of water.  My older sister, Sissy, was out running me by only a few feet and I could actually gain on her if she would only run in a straight line and help break the force of wind that hindered me when she veered to the right or to the left.  Only a little farther, I thought, as we both chugged up a small slope on the grassy knoll.  Just then, Sissy's foot slipped and she nearly lost her balance as her gait mis-stepped and I went whisking passed her to run headlong into the play area with swings.  "I won, I won," I yelled as I jumped up and down on the uneven brown gravel which stretched underneath the four-seat swing set and extended over to the seesaw, the sand box and the monkey bars.

Sissy approached the swings with a slight limp and was quietly crying as she took hold of the swing's chains and lifted herself into the seat.  "Are you OK?" I asked as we both gasped to catch our breath.  "I didn't beat you fair and square.  If you hadn't slipped you would have won," I said, trying to comfort her.  After all, she was my big sister and if I wanted her to play with me ever again, I knew better then to make her angry.  "Hold tightly and I'll push you real high.  So high that you will touch the sky and I will run underneath you," I remember saying as we started to play.

That event happened in 1947 in Washington Park located on Northwestern Street in Indianapolis, Indiana, when Sissy was nine years old and I was eight.  The park was located across the street from Aunt Bea's house where we were visiting for the weekend.  Our mother and father liked to go dancing and they would often ship us off to Aunt Bea's so they could 'cut a rug' at the neighborhood juke joint.

In those days, it was safe to allow kids to play in areas a short distance from their houses as long as the  adult could see them or the children were within "yelling distance" of the house.  The playground area where we played could be seen from our front porch and every now and again, Aunt Bea would appear on the porch and wave to us.

Time passed quickly as my sister and I took turns pushing each other in the swings.  Soon, other kids joined us and we all would be having fun squealing and kicking gravel and running from one play area to another.  We would fall down and frolic in the tall grass and pick white and yellow dandelions on that bright sunny day in early March.

Without warning, an amazing sight appeared in the sky.  All the kids looked up over the cluster of bushes and saw about seven or eight brightly colored kites with beautiful streamers attached, flying silently and almost motionlessly in the blue sky.  The kite strings floated down towards us but disappeared over the next hill.  "Come on," Someone yelled:  Come on."  "Let's go see who's flying those kites."  So we all left our safe play area and took off running over the hill and out of sight and earshot of Aunt Bea.

Just over the hill we could see each kite string in the hands of a strong teenage boy who was maneuvering and jockeying for position and going with the flow of the wind as he pumped his kite higher and higher into the air.  There was a rhythm surrounding the young men as we watched in amazement.  When one moved to the left, seemingly they all moved to the left.  And with arms raised and bodies bent into the wind's current, they would all float back to the right.  Soon, we kids were drawn into their wake and found ourselves deeper and deeper into the bowels of the park and actually lost in its landscape.  No one was really aware that the sun was going down and evening was quickly approaching.  We were just too caught up in the excitement of the moment.

It was not until we reached a small pond where white ducks and geese were swimming did Sissy and I realize that we were in an area of the park that we had never ventured to before.  As our eyes met, our mouths flew open and our eyes grew bigger as we suddenly knew we were not only lost, but out of range to yell for our Auntie to find us.  What were we to do?  We ran to each other and said not a word.  We just embraced and began to cry.  The rest of the crowd moved on and were soon out of sight over the next hill.  We were now all alone, scared and frighten out of our wits.

Sissy guided me over to a tree and we sat down and stared at the ground.  In the stillness we could hear the wind ever so softly, calling our names.  Tears were streaming and the wind was faintly whispering, Sissyyyy...Snookyyy...Sissyyyy...Snookyyy.  At the second 'wind' call, Sissy and I were on our feet and running towards the sound.  We heard it again and again.  That's no wind, that's Aunt Bea we thought as our hearts raced and our feet took wings and flew us directly into her path.  We both ran smack into her massive thighs and almost knocked her down.  But her large body and her strong arms held firm.  Her mouth was set perched atop her lower lip as her right hand took hold of Sissy's collar and her left hand grabbed the back of my neck.  Without a word she marched us across the park and up the front steps of our front porch.  (To this day, I don't believe our feet ever touched the ground.)

You can imagine what happened to us once we were behind closed doors!

---------------------The End-------------------

THE MORAL OF THE STORY…GOD’S CHASTISEMENT!!

There are so many ‘life lessons‘ in the above children’s story that if we truly disscet their meaning based on our own individual life experiences, they might warn us of whether or not we are in store for a trip to the ‘wood shed‘ for some sort of discipline by our Lord and Savior. So, please privately respond to the following ten questions:

1.	 Has your life been filled with ups and downs; successes and failures; lies and truths; 
                  love and hate; doubts and faith?
2.	What has caused you to slip and loose your gait?
3.	Has someone else received a reward you thought you earned?
4.	What was your reaction to the above question?
5.	Have you ever admitted to cheating or scamming anyone?
6.	Have you ventured into uncharted waters and almost drowned?
7.	Are you able to love your family, friends AND enemies?
8.	Can you turn the other cheek?
9.	Can you name and applaud your mentors?
10.   Have you endured a punishment that restricted your freedom?

Scripture Lesson: “The good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and the evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For out of the overflow of his heart his mouth speaks.” Luke 6:45

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