A Childhood Memory of Roma by Jim Wood

One day when I was about 6 and Roma was about 12, we were playing in a vacant yard, trying to dig a large hole to use as a “fort”. An older boy from the neighborhood, a lot bigger than Roma, came along and began to taunt us, saying he would knock us off a fence we were climbing on. Roma jumped down and told him to leave us alone. He didn’t, and continued to bother us. Roma got into a fight with the boy and knocked him down. She then found a large rock and told him if he moved she would hit him in the head with the rock. He was crying and looked for something to use to hit Roma with. He picked up our shovel when Junior Taylor, a strong but gentle boy, came along and grabbed him, took the shovel away and told him to leave us alone. Roma was my hero...and I don’t think that bully ever picked on her again!