I am writing this week’s blog with a heavy heart. Over the passed week or two, I have heard stories of learners bullying and hurting one another. I have picked up that the number of casualties due to bullying have been increasing.

I was a victim of bullying and I know from experience that it is not the easiest thing to deal with all the time. Aside from the bully themselves, there is all the aspects to a teenage life to deal with while going through school. One of which is peer pressure, which is also a pretty dangerous thing when it comes to introverts for example. This only being because sometimes introverts find it a bit harder to stand up for themselves.

The effects of bullying can push people to the edge. The edge being suicide for example.  How can one human being drive another human being to taking their own life?  How can they cause so much pain to another and the family that is being left behind?  Why does it have to come to that point?  Families are left with questions as to why they did not pick up what was going on?   The victim is the one suffering so much hurt and pain and the guilty get away with it???    It brings me pain to hear stories of other learners being bullied by their peers.  The reason it brings me such frustration is because I personally know the effects of bullying. Due to my experiences, I have major trust issues. I struggle to trust any new person I meet. Some are harder to trust than others, but it has affected me. I struggle to have relationships with people because of my hesitation to let people in. I am slowly working on it though.

I strongly believe that all people should be treated the same. No one is better than other people no matter the circumstance. Everyone has their flaws. Irrespective of what people may think about other people, all people are not perfect. People need to learn to be accepting of each other and not automatically judge others or assume anything about others. It should not EVEN be a thought to hurt another human in any kind of way.

I always talk about having an empathetic approach in life. People should learn to relate to people and see their point of view in different angles. It is a BIG point I try make in my motivational talks. My only wish is that people actually get it into their minds, that empathy is the better way when it comes to choosing the right path to any form of interaction.

“The common mistake that bullies make is assuming because someone is nice that he or she is weak.  Those traits have nothing to do with each other.  In fact, it takes considerable strength and character to be a good person.” – Elizabeth Williams