When I was small, I was really small. In fact, I was the shortest girl in my whole grade. I had a pixie haircut that stuck up in the back, and I had thick, black-framed glasses which came in handy because I loved reading books more than anything, except for maybe playing outside.

We had a gang of kids of all ages in our neighborhood, and for the whole summer we would run all over our block playing games like Hide and Seek, Kick the Can, and Ghost in the Graveyard.

I was third from the oldest, after Connie and Cathie Robertson, who lived next door. Connie and Cathie were always bossing the rest of us around. Guess who decided which games to play? Connie and Cathie. Guess who decided who was on what team? Yup. Connie and Cathie. Most of the time I didn’t mind, because playing the games together was so much fun.

One summer, though, I decided it was time for me to have more of a say in running things. I was, after all, third from the oldest. Connie and Cathie did not think much of this idea. One night, right after supper, Cathie got so mad about it, she pushed me—hard. So hard, I fell down.

I sat there on the ground, my heart pounding. The other kids were yelling push her back, push her back! Finally, verrry slowly, I stood up. And guess what? She pushed me down again. By now, even my Dad, who was out watering our yard, was loudly saying that I should defend myself.

Which might have made sense, except that I was seeing more clearly than ever before, that Cathie was twice as tall as me. From down there on the ground, she looked like a giant.

Did I mention that I was smart? I knew I didn’t want to fight. Not as much as I wanted to live. So I jumped up and skittered away like a tiny waterbug. I went into my safe house to read a book until bedtime, trying not to think about how sad and embarrassed I felt.

After that, I gave up trying to be one of the bosses, and we played games every night, just like before. I figured, oh well, any game is a good game when we are all playing. Until one day.

One day, I decided I was fed up to HERE. I was mad. I wanted to play my game, and I wanted everybody else to play my game, too. I started yelling at Connie and Cathie. You are not the boss of me, I said, and they told me to get off their property. I left all right! I said I was never coming back.

When I got to my yard, I reached down and grabbed a rock. I was crying so hard I could barely see. I threw the rock over toward their yard, and ran into the house.

A few minutes later, while we were eating supper, there came a knock at the back door. It was Connie. She was crying (in kind of a fake voice, if you ask me), and she said, Mrs. Rockne, Ellen threw a rock at us and it hit my glasses, and then it bounced off and hit Cathie in the neck!

Now, I was no good at throwing, so how on earth did I manage to hit two girls with one stone?  I never expected I'd actually hit them. I sat there, at the kitchen table, listening to Connie Robertson, and I began to feel…quite pleased. Wow. I was short, but I was tough.

That night, my mom and dad sent me to my room without supper. I began to feel a lot less tough. I was thinking about Cathie’s neck. What if I really hurt her? What if I broke Connie’s glasses? Who would play games with me now? I thought about how awful it was when Cathie pushed me. This felt even worse than that.

The next morning, I couldn’t stand it anymore. I went over and knocked on the Robertson’s door and said I was sorry. Connie and Cathie said they had been talking and had already decided they would forgive me. Then they asked if I wanted to play Tag. I said how about Hide and Seek? After a while, we all decided together on Kick the Can.

We played, and it was a good game.

And you know what? All these years later, every time I get mad at someone for being the boss of me (which is usually when I want to be the boss of them), I remember that the best cure for being mad is not pushing, or saying mean things. And it’s definitely not throwing a rock. The best cure is to get together and think of a good game to play, and then go out and play it.