In my sixteen years as a father, I have never felt knots in my stomach as much as about an hour ago, right before I had to discipline my three teenage sons. My wife and I have seven kids, and have used spanking sparingly as a form of punishment. None of the spankings have ever been very dramatic or severe. They usually are carried out by giving five to ten swats on their bottoms, fully clothed, with my wooden paddle. It usually brings them to some tears, none have ever made any of the kids cry uncontrollably though as I had never intended for that to happen.
It has probably been a couple of years since I have spanked Joshua, our oldest, now 16 and 1/2. We are from a small town, about 25,000 people, and Josh is the quarterback on the high school junior varsity football team. He is a good kid, being the most athletic of the seven kids, and also the one with the best grades in school. If I remember right, I spanked him last for skipping school back in his eigth grade year of school. He is pretty outgoing and pretty popular, at least he is always hanging out with five or six of his friends from the football team at school. I did have to punish him a couple of months ago however, after he came home late from a party. He was a 1/2 hour late, so I didn't make the punishment too severe, he was grounded for a week and had to do a few extra chores around the house.
Jacob, my second oldest, is 14, almost 15. He is our swimmer, and was a part of the high school state championship swim team last year in school. Jacob also makes good grades in school and is an outgoing, respectful kid. He does not get into much trouble, I did give him four or five swats about four months ago for mouthing off to his mother.
James, our third oldest, just turned 13 last weekend. James is our baseball player, and pretty good at it if I say so myself. That may sound like I am bragging, but he played for our town all star traveling junior team this summer, and had some excellent stats. He hit over .350, and made only 4 errors all summer long at shortstop. I am really proud the way he dives for those balls, and comes up throwing strikes to throw runners out at first base. It has been probably three months since I last punished James. I gave him a spanking for disobeying me and ignoring the fact that I had told him to mow the lawn. He tried to get out of it because he said that he had forgotten, but he had gone out with some friends after baseball practice, on a Friday afternoon to the mall to play some video games. I was really upset though because we had company coming that evening and he promised that he would have the yard mowed before they got there. I probably gave him seven or eight good swats and it happened with his cousins at our house. Although I always spank the kids in private, he was pretty embarassed as they all knew the punishment that was happening when it was going on.
Well last night, Joshua and Jacob wanted to take James out for his 13th birthday, to celebrate him becoming a teenager. The plans were to go out to a movie, then go cruising with some of their friends. Joshua has a car that he bought this summer from his own money from working on a farm, helping with harvest. It made me feel pretty proud of Joshua and Jacob that they wanted to hang out with their younger brother, and celebrate him becoming a teenager, so my wife and I agreed to it.
Their curfue is 11 pm. At 12:30am, I received a call from Troy at the police department saying that he had my three sons at the station for a minor incident and could I come to pick them up. Troy is an old friend of mine from high school. We played baseball together in high school, and were drinking buddies in college. Troy has four sons of his own, Jim, his oldest is a good friend of Joshua, and is the running back for the high school junior varsity team.
When I got to the station, Troy said that the boys had been picked up for speeding, and that the officer found a couple of beer cans in the car. We have never had any problems with the boys drinking before. This was a complete shock to me. While the seargeant went to get the boys, Troy asked if I planned to punish them the way we were punished 25 years ago. He was referring to the time when we were teenagers and picked up for drinking at a kegger at a lake party after a baseball game while we were in high school. Our dads were friends and the next day, they got together and decided to give us both a whipping together in Troy's dad's woodshed, bare bottomed, with a leather strap. I still remember that spanking like it was yesterday Troy had been punished like that several times, but I hadn't been spanked too much, and it was always with my pants on and with a wooden paddle. My dad was really mad over that incident however, and wanted to really teach me a lesson. I said that I wasn't for sure yet what I would do and I said that it had been a couple of years since I had spanked Joshua. He said he is not too old John, in fact I had to whip Jim like that just last weekend. Then he reminded me that we were older than Josh and Jim when that happened to us as kids. I said that I didn't even have a leather belt, at which point he took off his policemans belt right there an then and said you can borrow this. I said that I didn't know, but took it just in case.
Just then, the boys came out with the sergeant, and I heard Josh tell the officer that he didn't have to be such a hard ass. My heart just absolutely sank when I heard Josh mouth off like that to the police officer. Josh knew that it was very important to me that they be respectful and curteous to their elders. I told Josh that he had better just keep quite.
The ride home seemed like forever, no one said a word. I was trying to figure out how I would punish the boys. When we got home I told them to go straight to bed and we would talk about this tomorrow.
After church this morning, we went out to eat breakfast as usual, then when we got home, I told the boys to go straight to their room while I talked to their mother about their punishment. The other four kids were to do their chores and then on with their Sunday routines. Janice my wife said that she would leave the matter to me as she usually did with the discipline. I told her that I was thinking about severely spanking all three of them and she said that the situation probably called for it and to do as I saw fit.
It was settled, I went up to the boys' room and told them to follow me to the barn. They all three followed me in silence, and when we got there, I told them of their fate. I said that I was very disappointed in them and that drinking was not allowed, much less drinking and driving. In addition, I told Josh how hurt and disappointed I was with him for mouthing off to the officer. I said that I had made up my mind that they would be spanked, pants down with the belt that Troy had loaned me. Joshua's and Jacob's eyes got very wide and their mouths dropped wide open. James began to sob a little. That is when the knots really fired up in my stomach as I remembered how much I felt the stings of those whacks when Troy and I received our similar punishment 25 years ago. My heart just sank as I knew how much it would hurt and sting. I had never wanted to ever hurt my own kids like that and now I knew that in a matter of seconds that I would be on the giving end of similar blows that have stuck with me for 25 years. In addition, I knew how humiliated they would be by having to pull down their pants in front of me and each other. I remembered the humiliation that I felt as I had to go through similar actions 25 years ago.
James spoke up and said no way dad, not with our pants down and Josh said, come on dad, I am 16 years old. I just said "not another word boys, lets get this over with", and my heart sinking even deeper.
To my surprise, they all three then complied with my command to take their pants down and turn around. I wanted to keep it as private as a matter for them as possible, so I did not want them watching as the others got their smacks. By this time James was crying more profoundly and I said that he would be first. I told him to turn around and come over to the wood pile that we had stacked for the winter in the corner of the barn. He turned around and came over. He was shaking and crying as he stood in front of me. I had to help put him in position as he was very weak and trembling. I knew that he had knots in his stomach as much as I did. He outstreached his hands and reached for the other side of the wood pile and held on as tight as he could as if somehow he knew that it would sting very much. I gave him 10 very hard WHACKS and he cried out louder with each one, crying uncontrollably by the end. I helped him back to an upright position and gave him a hug and told him to go back over with his brothers.
Then it was Jacob's turn. He came over to me. He was not crying yet, but was trembling a little. I led him over the wood pile also and proceded to smack away. He was silent, not making a sound after the first, the second, the third and fourth SMACKS, but I could see him twitching and flinching and on the fifth swat he let out a loud cry and started crying, and just like James, each SMACK brought a little louder cry. He too was crying uncontrollably by the tenth SMACK. I helped Jacob to his feet also, gave him a hug and told him to go stand next to his brothers.
Joshua turned around and came walking a little more confidently over to me. He said I can't believe you are really going to do this to me Dad, I am too old for this. I said that I considered him the most responsible for this whole ordeal and that he would get it the worst. As he said "but dad" I could see a little fear and humiliation in his eyes, and hear a little less confidence in his voice. Our eyes met and he could see the stern and seriousness and hurt in my eyes and started walking limberly over to the wood pile. I said just a minute Josh, your will be leaning over the hood of your car. His car was parked in the stall of the barn where it was usually parked. My wife and I went back down to the police station before church this morning and picked it up. He said in a confused voice, what? I said that since he was driving and drinking that I wanted him to remember every time he drove that car what happened, and I want him to associate this punishment with that car everytime he drives it in the future. He rolled his eyes a little and changed directions and walked over and stood by his car. Although he didn't resist, I had to grab his arms and lead him to the position over the hood that I wanted him in. I outstreched his arms across the hood and leaned him over the hood of the car. It took seven good hard SMACKS before a sound came out of him, then I heard ouch, and awww dad after the eigth and ninth SMACKS, then after the tenth, he flung his arms back and began rubbing his bottom as he stood up and said ouch in a trembling voice. I said not so fast Josh, you are getting a few more since you are the oldest, and the one responsible for this. I had to forceably help him back into position this time, and by the twelfth SMACK I hear some faint sobbing, by the fifteenth, I could tell there was distinct crying, and I stopped at 18 with him crying pretty profoundly also. I helped him up, gave him a hug, and told them all three to get dressed and go to their rooms. I told Josh that his car would be staying where it was for two weeks, and that they were all grounded for the next two weeks also. They quietly got dressed and walked into the house and straight to their rooms without a word.
That was about an hour ago, and the knots are still in my stomach for having ot hurt them like that. Someday I might show this to them to let them know that it really did hurt me as much as it hurt them.