bullying

I don't know anyone who remembers meeting their parents when they were a baby so i'm just like everybody else. -Zoey (100% Real)

You are real! Everyone has to be different or the world would be really boring. If we all looked the same, then no one could tell us apart. -Janelle

When I first went to kindergarten kids asked me what I was. I did not understand-I'm a person. They explained that I look a little different and it is not as easy to tell which color I am. -Janelle from Who I Am Not What I Am, Tara Michener

I am still bullied occasionally. However, none of my current bullies really exist. They__e all in my head. Be your own best friend instead of your worst enemy.

How easy would it be to let the words uncurl from my tongue and glide slowly into the space between us? Let them light up the room in bright-orange neon: Here's your answer! Here's what you need to know! It's an incredible thing to have that kind of power. To know that your words could change everything.

Talk to yourself the way you'd talk to someone you love. Shush your inner bully. Be your own bestie.

There are those who will resent you for not being confined by their limitations.

There's always this one girl. She's desperate and she's weird and she's jealous, and you're stuck with her, no matter how hard you try to get her off your back. Just throw some really fucked-up self-esteem issues into the mix and you have Kara.

People who repeatedly attack your confidence and self-esteem are quite aware of your potential, even if you are not.

...here's what I've learned - people will hurt you, but you don't have to respond - not every mean comment or cruel act deserves to be noticed ...

I__ not the only kid who grew up this way. Surrounded by people who used to say that rhyme about sticks and stones. As if broken bones hurt more than the names we got called, and we got called them all. So we grew up believing no one would ever fall in love with us. That we__ be lonely forever. That we__ never meet someone to make us feel like the sun was something they built for us in their tool shed. So broken heart strings bled the blues as we tried to empty ourselves so we would feel nothing. Don__ tell me that hurts less than a broken bone.

The common mistake that bullies make is assuming that 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.

We have probably all seen teachers who would pick a student up by the scruff of the neck for saying __hit,_ but who would walk by without a word when overhearing that same student taunting a classmate, calling him a __ag._ It is often easier not to intervene _ even when there is a clear-cut victim. It__ out in the hall. It isn__ our business. It isn__ our problem.But our inactions, like our actions, define who we are and what are true values are.

Be a kind person. Yes, even to jerks. Let them be a jerk. You be a kind person.

Do what you can to avoid or neutralize conversations which put people down. Think with your heart.

Be kind to yourself. Remember that when you abuse yourself, you will experience the anger, regret, and apathy of the bully as well as the depression, anxiety, and insecurity of the victim. Whatever you do, be kind to yourself.

She may not be the prettiest, or the smartest, or the wealthiest at the Academy, but she could be kind. Anyone could be kind.

Think before you click. If people do not know you personally and if they cannot see you as you type, what you post online can be taken out of context if you are not careful in the way your message is delivered.