My Mom and Her Big Brother, Tom!

I have been trying very hard to remember stories that I heard growing up and for some reason, this one came to mind earlier today.  I don't know why I haven't remembered it before.  It is one of my favorite stories about my mom. Growing up, I always wondered why she was so strict with me.  I was a fairly good kid and she was extremely strict with me.  When I became an adult, I realized it was because she was a bit of a "hellion" and so she wanted to make sure I wasn't.

My mom was born in October, 1917. Her brother, Tom, was born in January,1915.  So there was a little over 2 1/2 years difference in their ages. From what the stories I remember, Tom was a really nice boy and was not a fighter or aggressive at all.  He was just one of those nice kids. I am sure my mom was a nice kid, too, but she had a rebel streak in her that lasted her entire life.

The story that I remember was when Bill was born in 1925.   That would have made Tom almost 11 and mom about 8 so I am thinking third and fifth grades.  

At Loretto (even when I went there) there was a boys' playground on the east side and the girls' playground on the west side.  

The story goes that someone came over to the girls' side and told my mom that another student, also named Tom, was beating up her brother, Tom.  So my mom immediately went over to the boys' playground and basically beat up the other Tom.

My grandfather was called by the principal (nun) who had my mom in the office. Having been a principal, I can really relate to this story.  Apparently, Tom's parents came to the school to complain about him being beaten up.  So Sister brought my mom, who was tiny, out and let them see who had beaten up their "older" son.  It turned out that the other Tom was an only child and he was very upset about the Scott's having "another" baby, so he decided to take it out on Uncle Tom.  But Tom Scott was not a fighter so he got the worst end of the fight until Margaret showed up and she took care of him!!!

From what I heard, my mom didn't get into too much trouble with her parents other than a lecture about not fighting bigger boys and to let her brother stand up for  himself.

Those who knew my mom can truly understand how this happened.  She always stood up for what was right and she always stood up for family.  

I LOVE THIS STORY!!!