A Story From My Childhood & A Tonic Cover 🎧
What’s a small moment from your past that you still think about years later?
Sometimes the future says run. So what do you do when you can hardly walk?
Well, in this story, I was tired of running. It was time to stand and face the music.
Fight.
When I was around 8, my family moved to a new place. A new town. New school. New friends. New everything.
It took some getting used to for a little flaming red-haired, freckled kid.
The neighbor boy was a bit older than me. One day I saw him and a few of his friends out in the street tossing a football… an American one. 🏈 The only kind there is. 😄
I love sports. I wanted to play too. So I mustered up the confidence to go introduce myself.
Before I even got far into my introduction, one boy says, “HEY LOOK GUYS… HE’S RED ON THE HEAD LIKE A DICK ON A DOG!!!”
Then they all started laughing at me and calling me names. Making fun of me.
I just stood there empty inside, wishing I could go back to where I come from.
Over the next month, things got worse. Every afternoon, when the school bus emptied, about ten of those older boys would chase me all the way home.
I would always try to sit at the front of the bus so I could exit quickly, then run for my life as fast as I could. I’d hope and pray I could make it to my house before they caught up with me.
This went on for a month. I had legs like a deer by the end of this crap. lol
Finally… It occurred to me that I can’t go on like this. Something has to give. So the next day, I told myself, no more. No more running.
When I got off the bus. I walked. Like normal. They surrounded me. Circled me. One boy says, “WE GOT HIM NOW FELLAS!!!”
Then a kid around my age entered the circle, with a look on his face and in his eyes that meant one thing, he wants to kill me 😂.
He walks right up to me and throws his fist up like he’s ready to duke it out! All the older boys are standing around cheering him on.
So I thought to myself, “This is it…it’s now or never.” I laid my book bag down. I put my hands up.
We danced around for a few minutes. I was waiting for him to throw the first punch. But he didn’t. I was tired of dancing. So I went first. I busted him right in the mouth. The cheers ceased. Him and his glass jaw hit the ground along with his pride.
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I never ran again.
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“Everyone has a plan… until they get hit in the mouth.” — Mike Tyson 😎
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On this day Nov 7th 1988… my best friend Joey was killed in a dirt-bike accident. I’m remembering him today
© 2026 Bryan Loia Hudson. All rights reserved.
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