Joan Joyce (Schiavon) Huesca
1928 – 1987
In her own words (Part Eight)
In the episode that follows from her (unfinished) book, Joan Joyce Schiavon Huesca: an Autobiography, my mother recounts a poignant memory of the wise way her father, Ralph Schiavon, understood that sometimes the fearful anticipation of a consequence for one’s actions is more effective than the consequence itself. This was one of her favorite stories, and she told it often, adding that this event was, for her, a hallmark of the mutual understanding and love between her and her father.
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| My grandfather, Ralph Schiavon, Chicago, Illinois. |
“I had escaped spankings…but there was one time, that I almost received a firm hand on my bottom. I don’t recall what I had done, but I remember my Mother was very angry and threatened that when my Father would come home, I would be spanked.
“All afternoon, I worried, my Father had such BIG HANDS! ‘This will be some spanking,’ thought I. Finally, the hours passed, the front door opened and there was my Daddy…SO BIG! He had a smile on his face, which quickly disappeared as my Mother told him of my misbehavior. A stern, serious expression crept across his face, and I stood there, grasping my Mother’s dress hem, trying to disappear behind her.
“My Father grunted, ‘Come with me.’ I followed as slowly as possible, cringing inside with fear. We entered the bathroom, my Father closed the door, turned to me, and asked if I was sorry for whatever I had done. In a small voice, I replied that, ‘Oh yes, I was very sorry and I promise never to do it again.’
“In the meantime, my Mother, waiting outside in the hall, was having second thoughts about my punishment. A smile appeared on my Father’s face, and he plotted with me to clap his big hands together, and I would scream as loud as I could.
“My Mother called out for my Father to stop spanking me. We opened the door, with big smiles, I in my Father’s arms, and that was the tale of my only ‘spanking-that-never-was.’ Let me add that from that time on, I think there was a special bond between my Father and me. My Father had been beaten as a boy, as my Grandfather was very stern, and through my life, my Father tried to shield me from harm.”
– Joan Huesca
Copyright © 2012 Linda Huesca Tully