Church,  A School of Love

Part 2

Sixteen

Aaron’s grandma died and he was boxed off to his aunts. He remembered standing over his grandmas casket. All he saw was that clown face from when he was six. It took every ounce of strength he had not to ask his aunt to make sure she was really dead? Maybe when he became a man; he stood up a little straighter, he would go piss on her grave. Did that make him a bad person? Wanting to piss on her grave. Suddenly that clown face was back, this time it was gagging and choking on his piss. 

His aunt went to church as well. But she went to a different church. The women in this church were dress simply. All the young ladies smiled at him. A couple even winked. The first time, he felt embarrassed. The second time, he felt good about himself. The third time, he was ten feet tall and bullet proof. ‘Aaron the ladies man’, he smirked to himself. 

One Friday after school, he and his aunt had a meeting with the preacher. She was his closest kin and he would be living with her until, at least, he was eighteen. During this meeting, he had to swear on the Bible and sign a commitment to the church, there could never be any recordings inside the church. The fat preacher with his greasy face huffed, “you belong to the church now son.” Aaron’s blood ran cold at this. 

The next Sunday, as the preacher spewed forth fire and brimstone from God’s wrath, the men of the church released hundreds of snakes. If Aaron could have climbed on his aunts back, he would have. His heart was racing out of his chest. 

“Devil!” The preacher shouted at the top of his lungs, pointing at him. 

Grown men grabbed him. “Auntie help me! Make them stop!”

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw her hit the floor on her knees, praying. All the other women did the same. The young boys filed to the front and began to sing. The louder he screamed; the louder they sang. “I’m afraid of snakes!”

Those grown men, tore off his clothes and held him down. They were too strong for him. He couldn’t fight them off. The snakes were allowed to crawl all over him. He stopped screaming so that a snake wouldn’t crawl in his mouth. These grown ass men held him down and allowed this while the boys sang. The women prayed and the preacher preached hell fire and brimstone.