Buddy, NOT Bully

Its 3 AM, and I was laying in bed when the idea of bullying came to mind. All these thoughts about it rushed to my mind instantly , and I was going to wait until the morning to write about it, but remembered its better to do it when its fresh in your head. It seems lately, probably within the last year, I've heard quite more sad stories about the results of being bullied. Stories of young boys and girls being bullied to the point of suicide. Stories of kids/teens being attacked at school for being a different race, physically different, or being gay. And in an instant, their lives came to an end. All because of ignorant torment from their peers. PROOF that words can be the deadliest weapon. Words that didn't even need to be said in the first place caused the lives of several youths every year. Why? Why do people choose to bully? Why do people go out of their way to tease and torment others who really are of no relevance to them? Does it make them feel cooler? Tougher? Funnier? How do they feel after they find out the peer they harassed gave in and ended their lives? Can they live with that? Or how about the people the stood by and watched people get bullied? How do you think they felt when they heard of a suicide of a constantly bullied classmate, who was continually teased and they sat back and did nothing to stop it? Growing up, I never bullied anybody, but rarely tried to stop anyone from bullying. I was friends with people who insulted others constantly, and almost never told them to "knock it off." I was fortunate that nobody I knew ended their lives because of it, but who knows how close it came while I was in school with them. You also have to think, what about those students who went on a shooting spree and their schools? From reports I've heard and read, they were "social outcasts" at their school. Did they get tormented by fellow peers and classmates? Were they harassed so constantly that they finally lost their sanity and took it out on innocent people? It makes you think, could simple hurtful words from ignorant people cause a few individuals to lose all composure and end the lives of many? Now in no way am I saying what they did wasn't their fault. Clearly what they did is and was unforgivable and unforgettable, but you cannot help but think to yourselves, maybe if people had said "hello" to them instead of ignoring them, or tried  to accept them socially for who they were, this would have lessen the chances of these violent events to occur. But who knows, maybe they were just sick individuals from the get-go. But back to my point. Bullying is such an unnecessary part of this modern day culture. I do see schools trying to push a "anti-bullying" movement, as well as Rec Centers around the world ( I currently work for a Rec Center that teaches kids to try and stop bullying).  But as long as there are kids/teens/adults who have no care for their actions and have that attitude of "You're different, therefore I don't like you," I fear that bullying is something that will never go away.  But I hope I'm wrong. Work for a world where EVERYONE is accepted.

#WorkForChange