I find it difficult to remember what other boys said about me wearing shorts. I found it such a humiliating experience that I think the 'situation' took precedence over what was actually being said. I can tell you that it was really irritating.

The Teasing

The teasing was bad enough tha first term. But it seenmed to get worse as time went on. This was especially true as we got older and stood out more. The younger boys in particular seemed to enjoy teasing us.

I can remember a lot of different taunts. "Oh my, what nice legs." "Who wears short shorts" (Usually sung, as it was the name of a popular song around the time.) "Can't you afford long ones."

Younger Boys

Even to this day I can recall memories of the taunts of younger boys about our short pants. You may recall I said the rule for shorts applied only to the M forms, with other forms having the option for longs. In effect this meant when I was in my second/third years, new boys starting senior school in these other forms could be in long trousers. Most of my form suffered younger, smaller boys, jeering us in our short pants. It was quite humiliating to be made to look so juvenile along side boys more junior than us. It once even got me into a school fight!

Older Boys

One of my worst memories was some older boys catching me in the street and making me pull my shorts up to the top of my thighs, so they could see more of my legs! Their threat was "you pull them up, or we pull them down." I pulled them up, then made to hop from one foot to another, dancing. I am not sure what the object was, just to make you feel plain silly I think, but I remember this incident very well and it bothered me a great deal at the time. I was, in my attitudes, almost certainly older than my years and perhaps a little arrogant, which only served to make matters worse.

Girls

I cannot recall girls making any real comments about the shorts us M-form boys had to wear. Perhaps, they thought of us as just little boys, beneath their consideration. Except, John Dodds, of course who was very popular with them.

Stephen and the Fight

Teasing was usually confined to certain individuals and, in my case one particular boy. His name was Stephen. I can still visualise him very well. This boy started the school as a second year, an A form boy, and a total stranger to me, not being from our town, but, he formed an alliance with two of my former junior school friends. You may recall I said these friends slowly drifted away when we entered into different forms.

Stephen was a year or so younger than me, a fair bit smaller, with deep red/ginger hair. Being in the A form he wore optional longs from day one, so I never saw this boy in shorts, but he seemed to take a delight in teasing boys who had to wear them, and me in particular. I don't know if this was because I was a tall boy and rather comical in shorts pants, or jealously, me being in a higher form, or perhaps just the fact he could guarantee a reaction from me.

He was always careful to be in the company of others, who he encouraged to follow his lead and I can remember feeling particularly resentful about former friends teasing me in this way. Anyway, one particular day he started to follow me home as we left school and was throwing small stones at my bare legs. I was not particularly a 'fighter' at school but I just saw red and gave him a good, hard push that sent him down to the ground. As I stood over him, feeling pretty good at finally confronting him, a small group gathered round to witness our combat. He jumped up and hit me full in the face with his fist!! Fighting in my book consisted of pushing and shoving, even a bit wrestle, but a full blow punch was totally unexpected. It's a long time ago, but I can remember he caught me square on the nose and made it bleed, and it hurt like hell. A full blow fight ensued, with a good crowd now, baying for blood. Younger and smaller he may have been, but he fought like a demented terrier and sadly (well in my view) he gave me a sound beating. In the end he sent me off home sobbing and totally humiliated.

Most of the support, if I remember correctly, was for Stephen. Perhaps, not unnaturally, as he was smaller and younger so a bit of an underdog. (Someone should have told him that) I think nearly everyone likes to see the big guy meet his Waterloo. I did have some support, mainly from other guys in shorts from my own class I think, who offered comfort after the event, like asking me if I was alright. All I wanted was to get anyway from everyone and back home. With regards to comments about actual shorts during the fight I cannot remember; surviving with some sort of dignity was more on my mind. I don't think there is any doubt I had a pretty bad beating that day(perhaps we I remember it so well) so sideline comments were probably lost on me. Interestingly , think back to this episode, I do not think I disliked Stephen after this, as I said he made no further problems for me, and I had a healthy respect for him.

As I said above, I did have support from my mates, verbally anyway. It evolved, that most of my school friends were boys in my own form, hence in the same position as me, all shorts wearers. Previous friends, who went into other forms and long trousers, drifted away. Natural selection I suppose. All the boys in my form suffered some teasing and only John Dodds seemed oblivious to it all. Of course, this could have just been the way he dealt with the situation.

If I remember correctly I tried hard to stay off school the next day, very embarrassed at being licked by a boy junior to me, but I had to go. That was my first and last major school fight. To be honest I cannot recall this boy ever bothering me again and nobody else seemed to make much of it. But it was a salutary lesson for me; the bigger you think you are, the harder the fall !!

Created: April 20, 1999
Last updated: May 10, 1999