A Better Solution Than Divorce

by Jennifer Allison

  

The High School Gym - Monday Morning

An announcement was made during the first period.

"Will the following students please report to the gym." All the side betters along with Tommy and Wally were call out of class.

Mr. Brown awaited them.

"I know about the incident Saturday night between Wally, Tommy and Jennifer McLean," he announced.

"If you know all about it, why were all called out of class?" Tim Watson.

"I also know the side bets the rest of you made, that's why," replied Mr. Brown.

"We were just having a little fun," said Brad Dilford.

"It wasn't very funny to Jennifer and it wasn't definitely not funny to me," Mr. Brown told them.

"After we leave the gym it won't be very funny to the rest of you."

"What do mean?" asked Brad.

"For your actions Saturday night I want a 5000 word essay on sexual assault on my desk by the close of school Friday,"

"WHAAAAAAAAAATTTTTTTTT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" was the response from the gathered crowd.

"What if I refused to do this essay?" asked someone in the back.

"You do have a choice," Mr. Brown said pointing to his paddle he had leaning up against the wall with the holes facing out. "The price is one spank for each dime bet."

*Just think the welts these holes can cause on a bare bottom.

"What about Wally and Tommy, they did a lot more than bet?" asked the voice in the back.

"Wally and Tommy have other punishments. One they will be sent home after this meeting. So they will lose out on the attendance bonus. And a few more items I am not at liberty to discuss. Their papers are also due Thrusday morning

"I should warn you football players. Coach McLean has his own punishment in mind for you.."

A very loud groan was heard in the crowd

"These essays will hand written. If I hear anybody cheating and helping each other. They will have to redo their essays and will meet the business side of my paddle. One other things, as of right now your parents don't know anything about this. They will be told why I had to spank any one of you case of a redo."

"Meeting dismissed."

 

Helen

I worked my team's butt off that Monday but I did nothing out of the ordinary. I did have a chance to talk to one the side betters in private. All I said was, "your punishment will start tomorrow." This way he could pass it on to the others.

It is now Tuesday afternoon I had my equipment manager place eight tackling dummies two rows of three with twenty yards between the rows and ten yards between the dummies. The last two I set at the opposite ends between the rows.

This drill is the one drill that my teams begged me to stop using at the beginning of the season.

The drill entail that each dummy be supported by a player. Then one at a time a player must run full bore and tackle the dummy. Then get up and run to the other row and tackles another dummy and so forth till he has done it with all eight dummies.

I could tell by the look on the faces of my team they were not looking forward to what I had planned. I then announced, "you can see what I have set up. But I do have some good news for some of you. Only a select few will have to run this drill and you know who you are."

Wally, Tommy and the rest of the side betters separated from the rest of the team. I then selected the eight largest players I had left to support the dummies.

Before the start of the drill I told them something else. "Tommy, Wally you not running this drill. I want the two of you to stand at each end and report any slackers." I then turned to side betters and told them. "Anybody not running all out will have to do the drill an extra time."

"How many times will we have to run this course?" asked Brad.

"Six times back and forth," I told them. "Also Wally, Tommy for every slacker you don't report the whole group will have to run the course an extra time."

"What if we refuse to do this?" asked Brad.

"I'll kick you off the team and then call your parents and tell them why I did so," I answered him. "Oh I forgot, we will be doing this drill tomorrow and Thursday too."

I knew that making Wally and Tommy watch would one of the worst punishments possible. At the dance they had a lot credibility, respect and a lot of the others followed their example.

After today I don't see that ever happening again.

"You think I doing this because it happen to my daughter. No I would this to anybody that is involved in something like this."

 

Hillery Knox

As most of you know trouble usually run in bunches.

When I arrived back at my office in the big city I jumped from the frying pan into the fire.

My first call of the day was from my sister. Martha.

"Hillery where have you been? I have been trying to reach you since Friday night." There was no Hello.

"I was out of town with my program, Why?" I asked.

"Vanessa tried to kll herself Friday afternoon, that is why," was her reply.

Vanessa was my fourteen year-old niece and my sister's only child.

"Is she okay?" I asked.

"Yes she is," Martha told me. "I tried calling you to help find out why she would do something like this."

"I'll be right there," I told her.

"No rush," said Martha. "When we couldn't get a hold of by Saturday morning. I called your friend Dr, Waterman. I remember you said one time that if you ever needed help he would be the one you would call."

"So what did Arthur find out?" I wanted to know.

"He didn't tell us anything but he did say he wanted to talk to you first. He also put Vanessa on a suicide watch at the hospital," Martha told me.

As soon as I heard this I knew there was trouble. There are two types of people who try to kill themselves. One who try it once to get attention and after getting said attention would be okay. The second group will not stop trying to kill themselves until they succeed or until their problem is found and fixed. Arthur felt that Vanessa fell into the second group and that was why the suicide watch.

I called to make an appointment with Arthur. I knew it the best way to talk to him. Cause Arthur and Speedy Gonzalez have something in common. Unless you make him stop you won't catch him.

By luck he had a cancellation for later that afternoon.

"Vanessa has a severe Sexual Identity Crisis," Arthur started with this. "She believes a mistake has been made and she should have been born a boy."

"How bad is it?" I asked.

"It has gotten to the point that she doesn't want to live anymore in the body she has been given," was he reply.

"Will corrective surgery help?'

"NO! Your niece has looked into the surgery and found that she will still a woman with men's features," Arthur said. "If only she had a brother who express interest in becoming a girl. We could have gotten her into your program."

Arthur has known about my program from the start. He is also the doctor I would go for a consult if I needed one.

Thinking over about what I was about to say. "That brings up a very interesting situation."

"Why?" asked Arthur.

"Right now I have a twenty-four year-old male living in Tolerance who believes he should have been born a girl. He has done my program with his sister, but after a month she wanted to switch back and he was heart broken."

"That could be the solution to the problem," said Arthur.

"That might be the solution to Vanessa's problem, but will my sister and her husband think so too," I stated.

"There is only one way to find out," said Arthur

That evening I invited myself to dinner at my sisters.

 

My next stop was the hospital to see my niece.

"Vanessa why didn't you and talk me about your problem?" I asked.

"You are my aunt and most likely will tell my mother," she replied.

"I am also a doctor, if you had come to me and told I couldn't your folks," I told her. "I would have broken The Prime Directive of being a doctor." I knew Vanessa was a Trekkie.

"Regardless of that you should have trusted me anyway."

"If this directive is so important why did Dr. Waterman tell you about my problem?" she asked.

"Dr. Waterman knows I might have a way that will help you," I told her. "The problem I can't tell you about until I talk to your folks, but I can't tell your folks without your permission."

"Do you really think you can help?" she asked.

"Yes I can help," I said flatly. "But I need your parents permission and I will need one thing from you."

"What would you need from me except my permission to tell my folks?" she asked.

"Your promise not to try and kill yourself ever again," I told her.

"What if my parents say no to what ever you have planned?" Vanessa asked.

"The promise will be good for your natural born life."

"Living in this body I can't make that promise," she said.

"I will make you a promice. If my plan works it will well worth making this promise," I told her. I then got up to leave. "I will give a few minutes to make up your mind. One thing, no promise no help."

I returned ten minutes later.

The first words out of Vanessa's mouth were. "I promise."

I reach over and to shake her hand.

"Don't I need to sign something?" she asked.

"Your hand shake is good enough for me," I told her.

 

My sister and her wanted to talk about Vanessa problem as soon as I walked into their house. All I said to them was, "wait until after supper."

It was a very tense supper but we made through without a hitch.

After dessert we took our coffee into the living room.

"Vanessa has an sexual identity problem," I told them. "She hates living in a girl's body so much that she would rather be dead than continue being a girl."

"I should have realized something like that was the problem," Martha said. "When I told Vanessa about the birds and the bees, she stated flat out she would never I mean never have a period. The when hers started. She took it as if someone was violating her body."

"I knew some what that wanted to be a boy," said Ben. "What girl would rather go fishing than go to mall with the other girls." Turning towards me Ben asked. "What can be done about Vanessa's problem. Sexual reassignment surgery, therapy or what ever. I have read some where that they do surgery that give a girl the charactortics of a boy."

'Surgery won't help in Vanessa's case," I told them. "Down deep she will a girl with the male equipment."

"So what can we do?" asked Martha. "Just bring her home and hope she doesn't kill herself."

"No!" I stared them in the face and said. "Have Vanessa join my program."

"Your program? Your speciality is family problems not sexual identity," said Ben.

"My program is for family problems but it help Vanessa with hers." I said.

"If you can?" asked Martha, "what is it"

"What I am going to tell is something right off the Sci-Fi channel," I started.

"What are going to do?" Ben said and with a laugh. "A mind swap."

"How did you guess?" I asked.

Utterly shocked Ben said, "I was just kidding."

"I am not kidding," I said. "I have been able to mind swap for over ten years."

It took a few minutes for what I said sink in. Martha then put things in priority, "how can this help Vanessa?"

"I know a young man who wants to be a girl almost as much as Vanessa wants to be a boy. I know he will be will to swap with Vanessa," I was thinking of Randy Wolf.

"How will this help?" asked Ben.

"This will give Vanessa a chance to see what it is like to be a man. It will help her learn that she is now a man her troubles will be still be there.

"What if she wants to swap back and this fellow doesn't?" asked Ben.

"Both parties have to agree," I said. "The guy I thinking about switched for awhile with his sister. He didn't like it when she decided to switch back but he did it."

Taking time to digest what I just told them.

"How will we ever explain this to our friends?" asked Martha.

"You won't have to explain the switch to anyone." Both Martha and Ben stared at me.

"For the first month at least you will live in a town out West were the people of program have been accepted."

I then went into more detail. I didn't leave my sister's house until after midnight.

 

The only decision made that night was. "We need time to think this over," said both Martha and Ben.

 

I was awoken at six by the this message.

"It is Vanessa's life so Martha and I have decided to support her decision which ever way she decides," Ben's voice said on the recorder. "Visiting hours at the Hospital start at 10am could you meet us at Vanessa's room."

I knew randy would want to know right away but I also wanted clear headed when I told him. So I decided to wait.

 

Randy Wolf

My alarm went off at 7 and one minute later my phone ranged. It was Hillery Knox.

"Randy How would you like to be a fourteen year-old girl for a little while, maybe forever," Hillery asked.

I could say was "Huh," my brain must have been still asleep.

Shaking my head it finally dawn on me what Hillery just said.

"What are you talking about?" I asked.

Hillery then went into details about her niece.

When she finished I asked. "Do you think she will do it?"

"I can't say for certain. I think she will try it for a month after that who knows," She told me.

"Are you willing to try?"

"Yes I am!" I said before I had a chance to change my mind.

"I will call you later with all the details," Hilllery said and hung up.

end of 14

  

  

  

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