The call came about three weeks ago. I cannot say that I was expecting it, but I cannot say that I was really surprised either. I had made a promise sixteen years ago, and I knew now what I knew then: that I would keep it.
I was working a city in the south about three hundred miles from the little town where I had gone to college. The guy who contacted me, Frank, also lived there and had gone to another school out of state. Our connection was that we were both members of the same social fraternity.
I had read something in the local newspaper about the chapter at the state u. in the city where I am living. They had got into some serious problems by serving minors liquor and for some strange episode during pledge week where one of the pledges had bitten a nude stripper on the ass. The local papers were all over it. Another glorious moment for Greek life.
Of course the college and the national had been all over the local chapter, imposing sanctions and restrictions up the ying yang. But the telephone call I got meant that the national, whatever it did in public for P. R. reasons, wanted to handle the matter privately, among brothers.
In other words, they wanted to invoke Rule 136.
Now there's nothing in the handbook or even in the initiation ritual about Rule 136. You only find out about it the hard way--no pun intended. On a need-to-know basis.
Frank had got the use of a cabin about twenty miles outside of town. We arranged to meet on a Friday night, along with two other alumns: Greg and a guy named Stuart. I didn't know them, but then again I knew all I needed to know, if the national had picked them for this 136 session. Frank made the arrangements and on the designated night, we picked up the current fraternity officers at the house. They were all dressed up khakis and dress shirts. And they were totally sober. That meant we had them where we wanted them. Worried.
There were four of them. Chris, the President, Chad the House Manager, Howie, the Treasurer, and Chuck, the Pledge Master.
We spent the drive to the cabin making small talk, sports mostly. I thought back sixteen years to my own trip with four alumni brothers. Thesepuppies didn't have a clue what was going on. They just knew enough to be a little on edge. You could hear it in their voices as they tried to be cool.
The cabin turned out to be a nice A-frame on the shores of a lake. Frank wasted no time. He gathered us in the living room and put on only one small lamp.
"Brothers, we will not beat around the bush. We are here to help you regain your control over this chapter. We are here to help you learn again the lessons of this brotherhood: to be men and to be leaders of men. Are you ready for this lesson?"
The officers mumbled "yes."
"Then you have become like pledges again, ready to submit to the wisdom of your brothers?"
They mumbled again. I could see that they hadn't really figured it out yet.
"You are about to be taught the most sacred of our rules, Rule 136. Each of us standing with you now has been in your shoes. We too failed in our leadership of chapters of this brotherhood. And each of us has learned the lesson of Rule 136. Will you, when called upon by this brotherhood, be ready to teach a younger brother who has faltered, as we are teaching you tonight?"
The officers spoke louder this time. "Yes."
Then prepare yourselves to receive the wisdom of your brothers."
I remembered this part of the ritual. Frank just waited for his words to sink in. They were practically the same as those used by the pledgemaster in the initiation ceremony.
Chad figured it out first. He nudged Chris and began to unbuckle his pants. The others followed suit.
Now call me an old fart if you want, but I think this country began going bad when young guys stopped wearing good old white fruit of the looms and got into this boxer short fad. But obviously fruits were out of style with the actives. Three of them had print boxers and the fourth those awful boxer briefs. I figured he should take wood for not being able to decide whether he wanted to wear boxers or briefs.
Frank looked them over. "The wisdom you need tonight, brothers, requires total submission to the rule."
Again Chad got it first. He stripped down his boxers and kicked them aside. The others did the same.
Frank reached down for the long gym bag he carried. From it he pulled the paddles each of us had brought with him.
If you have never been in a situation like this, you cannot really understand what is going through someone's head who is. You don't want the pain, of course, but you want the whole thing to be over as fast as possible. So you want it and you don't. You feel fear and anticipation. And unless you're made of stone, you start to feel a small tingling in your backside and in your balls.