Contemporary story
On

Spite

Mama was wrapping some kind of chocolate cookies that she bought to support a local orphanage. Sef came downstairs and stood in the hallway adjoining the dining area were Mama was thus engaged.

The day before he had tried to hang himself with a thin piece of cord. It was something he did in a desperate fit! He wondered if he was going to Hell for it. He thought about this while Mama wrapped the cookies.

Then Mama picked up a piece of twine. She said "Look Sef! This is called a hangman's knot! They used to do this so that the neck would break and people wouldn't choke slowly to death. The next time you play your games with string ... remember this."

 

For years he did not know what she meant by "games with string."

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Comments

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Bleak and funny. Unsettling, and leaves you as non plussed as Sef. I dont know about the use of the word thus,achaic words like this bore me and I cant help thinking that people who use these words have a skewed view of the world. Saying that, I do like this author.

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Weak.

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Déjà vu

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I think hes the one that tied the hangmans knot. So she wasnt educating him on it. She knew what he was up to. Moms know those kind of things. Made him not do it again, I can assure you that.

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Its puzzling and intriguing--which I like. But not sure how Id feel about it if I figured it out.

Could some of you who love this story and find it full or meaning please tell me what you got out of it?

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I think a lot of people are missing the point. Sef didnt nnat to actually kill himself, he did it in a fit and the narrirator states he used a thin piece of cord, which indicates he wasnt that serious... I think the mother uses the term "games with string" because she is almsot mocking him, knowing he wasnt serious with it and basicly telling him to; "grow up".

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you never know...
mama might have shed secret tears after telling her son this grotesque joke
you know...
mamas somehow get mad at you if you accidentally or intentionally hurt yourself
just like that.
why the title spite?
maybe to mislead readers to conclude
oh, that old Sefs mama is full of spite
cause then later they will be fully shcked to realize something beyond
yeah actually shes full of love and oh we little kids dont fathom the depth of our mamas love thats right there in their seemingly spiteful words

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I like this comment;

"I think a lot of people are missing the point. Sef
didnt nnat to actually kill himself, he did it in a fit
and the narrirator states he used a thin piece of
cord, which indicates he wasnt that serious... I think
the mother uses the term "games with string" because
she is almsot mocking him, knowing he wasnt
serious with it and basicly telling him to; "grow up"."

Also, the fact that he was thinking about it years later
showed that his mothers comment had worked in
mocking him

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Wow !

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This is a good one. His mother is getting back at him for upsetting her so badly by his attempt to hang himself, and he deserves her ridicule. It shows how very much she actually loves him and how deeply he hurt her.

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