My Trenchcoat

            High school was a very strange time of my life. I had a steady, serious girl friend. I’d had a few jobs, nothing serious. I owned my own Shagg’n Wagon. It was a huge van with shag carpet lining the floor, walls and ceiling. No 17 year old should ever have such a van. Oh the things people did in that van. Lets just say I’ll never be running for president because of that van.

At any rate, I was a very awkward teenager, you know, like most nerdy teens. I was picked on a lot, mostly because of the way I dressed. I wore a lot of black, wore a black trench coat with the Baphomet on it. I had a chain on my wallet; I dyed my hair outrageous colors etc and I wore my girl friends skirts. I was different. I wasn’t “metal” and I wasn’t one of the punk crowd.

My freshman year was probably the worst. The hicks picked me on at our school mercilessly, even though I played football with some of them, and was damn good at it too. They accused me of burning a bible out behind one of the buildings near school. I was simply there when it happened. No doubt, I was practicing Satanism at the time.

            One day they cornered me in front of the library. There were probably 30 or so people surrounding me, yelling that they were going to kick my ass. The librarian poked her head out and saw the crowd. She grabbed me and took me to the office and called the deans to come break up the crowd. They escorted me to the office to find out what was going on. I relayed everything that happened. They called in a few of the initial instigators and confronted them.

None of it really ever helped until Columbine happened. I wasn’t one to ever watch TV, unless it was a movie. So when Columbine High School had been shot up, I’d not heard about it. I wore my trench coat to school the next day like I always did. Wore it down the halls like I always did. Instead of getting pushed and shoved like I normally did, the people parted like the Red Sea. I didn’t understand what was going on. I think one girl even shrieked when she saw me. I must have looked ominous walking down the hall with my black combat boots. I probably even had a scowl on my face.

One of my teachers pulled me aside a few minutes later and asked if I was OK. I said I was fine and gave him a crazy look. He asked me if I had seen the news last night to which I hadn’t. He told me to go put up my coat and come to his room. He explained everything to me. From that day on my coat turned from armor to a sword. I didn’t look around for who might shove me into a locker, or hit me. I didn’t sneak around at lunch trying to avoid all the hicks.

What happened at Columbine was terrible and wrong. Killing innocent people should never be condoned. What happened should be used as a lesson in tolerance and humanity though. Those two boys were “batshit” crazy no doubt, however, if their peers had treated them better, it might not have turned out the way it did.

“Remember kids, it’s not cool to shoot up your school” Captain K of KMFDM