I was punished for having done "bad" things but they weren't bad, that was just a matter of interpretation by my stepmother. Don't forget you were in a rather "closed" world and the rules were different? Think of your kids at 9? Just run-of-the-mill kids, sometimes don't do their homework, sometimes are thoughtless (lots hasn't been learned yet) but not "bad"?

If I behaved badly why? Probably because my situation was "bad". And that shouldn't happen? My parents were good providers, my stepmother was home everyday, didn't work but that's not all life is about. What was it my 7th grade math teacher wrote about me? "Good ability, poor performance." That is sort of how I might have graded my stepmother sometimes?