All tied up (too real)
I think I was around 9 years old, when I saw my neighbors chase down my mom on a road behind our fence, pin her down to the ground, tie her with ropes and spit on her. There might have been a few kicks thrown in for good measure and a whole bunch of yelling. It was hard being me in that moment, as my impulse was to help her, rescue her from the abuse. But they were many. And I was 9, and there was only one of me. I climbed up the fence and watched. Helpless to help. Shocked and confused. Watched the whole thing from a few feet away, knowing there was nothing I could do. They let her go eventually. She ended up taking them to court over this and brought me in as a witness. I described what I saw to the judge, who then asked me what my opinion was about "all of this fighting". I said: "I really just want us to get along. It's quite sad that we can't." So the judge dismissed the case as a way of agreeing with me. "See, your son just wants you all to ge...