I pushed the boy's shoes from off of my hand and I declared what do you mean I cannot pass here? This is my school, I said. Now, I was in too deep to back out. I did not want to tango neither did I want to tangle with these boys, for two reasons, 1 I have never had a real fight, before, and reason 2: I was out numbered.
By this time there was a stand off and the stand off had moved into the street, off the school property. I stood in the middle of the street and the four boys, from the Richmond Hill School surrounded me; like four hyenas. I was hoping for a way out of the fight and for the most part, I believe the four boy, were hoping for a way out of the confusion also. For the four Richmond Hill boys, this was new territory. Up to this point in time, no one had ever stood up to them.
It was then I heard someone from the Prep School shouted, beat them Palmer, at least someone knew my name. However, that girl was shouting fighting instructions to me, was hidden away in the safety of the school, far from the danger. I am sure she did not carefully weigh the odds of me winning the fight or she may have said call the police.
Then I saw a much older girl, whom I knew very well. The girl attended, the Emanuel High School, and lived in Paul's Avenue passed by. In my mind, I said yes at least here comes someone I knew, I was sure, she was going to get involved and stop the fight.
To my surprise, I heard the girl said, "boy all-yo from Rockies, beat the man." As soon as those words left her mouth, I felt a punch to the left side of my face. I surely did not expected that. I wanted to cry, but I became so angry, and the reality that there were right more fist, waiting to pulverized my behind, stopped the tears that were about to flow.
Now, didn't have the time to shed not even one tears, and I totally forgot, about making peace, now I was not afraid, everything came normal to me. From watching Charmaine fight, I knew exactly what to do, and from watching my big brother Nazi practice, and teach the older youths like Mikey Brown and others Karate, I knew how to do it correctly.
I was hit once to start the fight, and that was it. I broke out into full fight mode, before I knew it, I had the four boys, running across the Grammar School Pasture; I was behind them giving chase. I was almost by the fifty yards box, of the football ball field, which separate the two schools, chasing the four boys, when I realized; I was running into enemy territory: I was running into the boy's school zone, where the four boys probably had friends and maybe older brothers and sisters.
Now all the children, who were hiding away in the school, afraid to come outside, were now standing in the street where the fight began cheering me on. Some of the children came down the little hill onto the park unafraid, to meet me, they were all patting me on the shoulder, telling me how good I was. They were all happy to have witness what had happened. By the time I reached into the crow of Prep School students that had gather outside, to cheer me on, everyone knew my name.
It was after this fight, I became friends with Mark Hadaway, Fitz and Frank. Now I was elevated to the protector of the School. Frank, Fitz, and Mark let me know what had happened, and we patrol the school. Word soon got around and each time, the Richmond students saw Mark, Frank, Fitz and I, they disappeared.
Soon I started getting request from the pretty girls to walk them to their parents place of work, to protect them from the Bad Boys. At that time; in my eyes Nicole Wilson, and the Jackson sisters were the cream of the Prep School crop. First we dropped off Nicole at Barclays Bank where both of Nicole's parents were employed, then to the Treasury department where the Jackson sister Mom were employed. We then walk the other pretty girls to their destination somewhere in the government building near by.
About five or so years later, I was a first form student at the intermediate High School, in my first term at Timmy School, I became very good friend with a teenager by the name of Keith Collis. Keith and I were very good buddies, a young man, who attended Prep School with me, call me aside to speak to me, the teenager, who was very upset, said to me. "Palmer you can't be friends with Keith" I was shocked at the statement, I say why can't I be friends with Keith, he said: "don't you remember, Keith was one of the boys you beat up and chased across the pasture. They use to beat us up".
At that stage of my life, I honestly did not remembered the guys, I had the fight with five years earlier. It was not one guy, I had to focused on, it was four guys, I was to busy trying to win the fight I did not pay close attention to the faces. Needless to say, I told my Prep School brother, that was a long time a go, we have to let it go. Which I did. Keith and I left the childhood experience in the past and we became very good friend.
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