Have you ever spoken up when you saw something going on that was wrong? Were you scared? What ended up happening?
I have a vivid memory of being a 6th grade Safety Boy on a remote street corner, where a fellow student was being bullied by some of my larger classmates. I ran over to help, which only shifted the attention to a new target, me. I was not very big and had only been in fights I was goaded into doing so. All of my logical reasoning and hollow threats of the consequences of beating on a boy in uniform fell on deaf ears. As I felt their fists wailing on my body while I was curled up like an armadillo, I questioned my judgment. Luckily one of the teachers from the school had been alerted by a friend of mine. The bullies now scattered to the wind.
I have faced other atrocities and each time the pain of that experience races through my thoughts, and is added to the decision equation. I have spoken up on some occasions, and not on others. I have not experienced such a violent response since that date. Some flack, some praise, and mostly a good feeling about being true to myself.
I have some shame and guilt for those times I did not speak up. Not for what it would have done for me, but how it negatively impacted others. We all have the right to make our own decisions during these situations. In my case, from now on, I will choose to stand up for what's right. Bullies beware!
photo credits: ID 30455111 © Glenda Powers | Dreamstime.com
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