I grew up a somewhat undisciplined child – I was adopted at the age of three and my new parents were too afraid to give me what I needed (i.e. a damn good spanking) for fear of having me taken away. So by the time I was in my teens, I pretty much got away with everything. Then one day I came home to find my mother and her friend Mrs Johnson, from a few houses down the block, talking at the dining table. Without any thought, I interrupted their conversation to ask my mom something. My mother ignored my rudeness. Mrs Johnson did not. Instead, she reached out and grabbed one of my wrists. She then looked me straight in the eye, and said: “If you were one of my children, I’d wallop your behind for interrupting like that!”

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