I don't usuall write much about my childhood. This story is written from chilhood memories, but not in the first person. I was diagnosed with dyslexia as an adult eventually, and have worked hard at words and numbers and still try and keep improving.  Spellcheck and calculators are my pals!

STIPIT

I suppose they micht just hae forgot, but it was aifter Easter an near the end o P1 afore they sent her aff tae the schuile, Helen felt was awfy auld, her new sister wis fower when she went, an she hersel hid been five fir a lang time, even since she had lived wi Granny whae nivver took off her knitting belt and made her pan scones on the griddle.

Her mither had come away frae the island wi Helen and her baby sister tae leeve wi the new people in the big auld hoose wi the heid o a dead stag wi horns and glassy eyes above the door that feart her tae the bone.

She’d learned plenty since she was there mind. She kent tae ca him Uncle noo, she’d learned tae use her new second name, she’d learned her old name was bad, but it was still in her clock picture book she kept under the bed so no one could take it. It had pictures of round clocks with hands, but she couldn’t tell what they said yet, but she kent that writing in blue on the lines in the empty page at the front said her whole name.

When she got tae the wee schuile that was on the corner opposite the bull field an the barrage dam, alang wi her new brothers and sisters she felt prood. Prood o her new leather schuile bag oan her back, her pencil and even her apple for play-piece.

The schuile had a wee end and a big end, twae classes, the wee end had new wooden tables and chairs, the big end, where the P5 tae 7’s went was set out wi forms rising up high.

 Miss James, in her black dusty dress, wanted her tae coont and dae letters wi the ithers at the wee tables. But the letters wouldny form richt oan the paper an the numbers slithered aboot, even the duckie 2’s, her favourites, could turn into 5’s if you weren’t careful.

They gave her blocks and rods tae help wi the numbers, wee cubes and longer blocks the cubes fitted intae, but it widny stick. She’d hae a minute whaur she’d hae it, then the knowledge wid slither away when she tried tae ca it back.

 

Helen couldny fathom the letters either, reading them wasn’t so bad, but still awfy hard, but she couldny write them well. They went backwards, the sticks were on the wrong side and they wouldn’t stay on the lines.

 

The mair she tried the warse it got.

Of course the belt they yaised fir the P1’s wis softer an wee, but when Miss James stoated it off the desk an telt her tae stop being stipit she was fair feart.  The next b she wrote was worse, backwards and not sitting on the line.

 

And as the teacher told her tae hud oot her haun, an hoo tae hud her other wrist and hold her hand flat, and she waited wi her een scrunched up, she really kent how bad she must be fir being stipit.