Dodgeball is one of the stupidest sports ever invented.

There are memories that I have tried to put to rest. Things I just absolutely abhor to remember, and boom there it is. All of the sudden. No warning. The memory of a skinny black kid named Anthony, and the geeky PE teacher Coach Evans all up in my memory's grille.

When I was in high school I didn't necessarily know that I was a nonviolent type. I was too busy just gettin' through my days at Corrigan-Camden High School. I would like to say that I did not protest much, but I was quite a complainer.

This is probably why Coach Evans rolled his eyes at me when I stomped up to him red-faced and ired and demanded that he tell Anthony "to stop throwing the ball at me." There were, in my head, several expletives that accompanied that adamant request, but I did manage to keep those on the inside.

Coach Evans curt reply only fueled my hatred for him. "I will not tell Anthony to quit throwing the ball at you. That is what he is supposed to do. We are playing dodgeball. Now get out there!"

During my brief encounter with the Coach, Anthony was carefully eyeballing me, gently tossing the red dodge ball from right to left, left to right -- smiling. He seemed to know that Coach Evans was going to take his side.

With a huge frown, a heavy stomp and a hefty swing that nearly dislocated my right shoulder, practically in tears at the injustice of it all, I returned to the court. Anthony was gleaming. His pearly whites screaming at me through his smile - "This is what happens to girlies who tattle tell." His teeth were the biggest part of Anthony. I know I outweighed him by thirty pounds, but I couldn't come close to lobbing a dodge ball with the strength and precision that he did.

Whomp! There it was. I didn't know how such a small being could put so much force behind that red foam rubber ball, but damn - he nailed me. I felt the sting of the dodge ball once again. The welt was already forming on my thigh.

The only thing I could do was cast a desperate glance at Coach Evans - who only shrugged and smiled and walk off the court deflated and defeated. My only recourse was spitting out "I hate you!" as I passed Anthony.

It wasn't Anthony that I hated.

It was the game of dodge ball.

Dodge ball that day was just one more reminder of how little control I had over my life. I was forced to participate in this barbaric game where the opponents had the obvious physical advantage, only to be once again humiliated by the sting of an unfair ambush. No matter how hard I tried to throw that ball, I could never inflict the pain onto others that I felt.

I hated dodge ball then, and I hate it today. It is not a game that teaches children any sense of morality or good sportsmanship. It teaches boys to be predators and girls to be victims.

Dodge ball be damned!