Literal and Figurative Face Punch

Have you ever punched someone in the face? 

I have not. 

When I was in Eighth Grade I did slap a boy hard on the face. He did something so infuriating and mean that before I knew it my hand was in the air and had made contact with his cheek, leaving a red handprint for about an hour afterwards.

Interestingly enough, I found no satisfaction in doing it. In fact, I quickly felt awful and very, very sorry. What he'd done did not deserve a slap in the face. I didn't think through the repercussions of my hasty action. I became that girl that slapped so-and-so, while what he'd done was quickly forgiven and forgotten.

This week one of my offspring punched someone in the face. Disclaimer: it was sort of an accident, but it happened nevertheless. The recipient happened to be a best friend. And she was stunned. Just like the boy I slapped thirty-five years ago, this current bestie was left speechless and deeply hurt, both physically and emotionally. Apologies were made. The friendship will go on. But now my child is the kid who punched so-and-so.

I had something happen to me this summer that was, in essence, an emotional face punch. Someone close to me, whom I trusted, told me something that made me feel like I'd been slapped or punched in the face. I was so stunned and and completely hurt. For an entire month I could feel the print left on my 'emotional face'. 

It has made me think very deeply about the way I treat other people - how I speak to them, what I share with them, how I might come across to them. I am trying to move past the place of victim crying, "I didn't deserve that hit" and into a place of, "Yes, I got hit, but the hurt is fading, and I'm okay." It isn't easy. It makes me grateful for a best friend who still on good terms with my child and a boy years ago, who forgave me for making a rash decision. I too, will be able to move forward from this figurative face punch with time.

As a side note, a spider decided to take a shower with me last week, and I felt absolutely no guilt as I placed my hand on the outside of the shower and used my other hand to punch him squarely in the face with all my might, killing him instantly. That is the only kind of face punch that should be allowed.