When I was in grade school, I used to get mercilessly pounded by this kid who had a pretty shitty home life. My mom and dad always told me to run away, try to deescalate, or tell a teacher. But no matter how much trouble he got into, he just kept on doing it and I would never fight back. Eventually, it got to the point where I didn't want to go out at all. I joined recreational football (county sponsored in the US) to get away from him after school.

The coach was awesome with us kids. He noticed a black eye one day, pulled me aside and asked if my parents were "hurting" me, and I told him no, and explained about this kid... which just so happened to be his nephew.

I'll never forget what he told me. "It's easier to sleep at night with a busted face, than it is to fall asleep scared.". Something about that resonated deeply with me. I didn't even wait for the kid to pick on me again. I wen't to school the next day, found him at breakfast in the lunch room, tackled his ass in line, and pounded his face until the vice principal pulled me off. Broke 3 fingers and my left wrist (missed a few times and pounded the cement floor). Poor kid was bleeding like a stuck pig from every orifice in his face. I got suspended for 3 days, had my ass whipped when I got home by my dad, spent 4 hours in the hospital getting my had and fingers fixed, and had to write and hand deliver an apology to the him and his parents (who sadly, couldn't have cared less)... but I slept like a baby and he never once bothered me again. In fact, no one ever bothered me again after that. I became a bit of a legend.

Coach was supposed to cut me from the team (and I couldn't play with a broken hand anyways), but instead I ran laps the rest of the seasons and learned his playbook. He never condoned what happened, but he did tell me something else that always stayed with me. "Some things are worth getting in trouble for, you just need to be prepared to deal with the consequences".