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Write 2 The Heart
January 27, 2005
Welcome to your latest issue of Write 2 the Heart.
Take a moment to browse our new bookstore at:
http://www.write2theheart.com/html/book_store.html
You will find wonderful books written, or include stories by many
of our talented writers. You will also find books that aide the
budding writer. I highly recommend “Sally Stuart’s Christian
Writers’ Guide,” and “2005 Writer’s Market.” Both are must haves
for all serious writers. They are great tools to find that perfect
market for your writing.
Most of us have witnessed bullying or have felt its ugly sting.
Kathy relates a time when a new girl at her school was the object
of such maltreatment.
The Effects Of Being Bullied
By: Kathy Whirity
If you've ever been a student, chances are you've either
experienced the pain of being bullied, or taken part in an act of
bullying. One such memory stands out in my mind, as clearly as if
it happened yesterday, even though it actually took place over
three decades ago. It happened in Mr. Keller's 6th grade history
class. Back then, kids who didn't fit in we're called queer, which is
equivalent to the newer insults of geek and dork that are used by
today's generation of school children.
The new girl had been taunted almost since the very first day
she set foot in the new school. Every day she'd sit among the cool
kids, but she was far from 'cool' in their eyes. They never got to
know her giving spirit, or her compassion for others. Instead, they
picked on an awkward adolescent and relentlessly made fun of her
too pudgy facial features.
I often heard the giggles of the popular kids as they'd called her
names like cow cheeks while passing by her desk. I remember how
she'd sit there in silence, never acknowledging, either way, the hurt
and pain that was clogging her young and heart. Each day, when
the bell rang, signaling a change of classes, I'd listen to the barrage
of insults aimed at her, as the group of juvenile delinquents
entertained themselves at her expense.
I was also in Mr. Keller's class the day the new kid was pushed
to tears in total humiliation. As she went to take her seat, some-
thing incredibly awful happened. A fellow classmate offered her a
chair, which she had no way of knowing was broken and unsteady.
But her cruel classmate knew it. As her weight connected with the
wobbly legs of the broken chair, it collapsed, sending her crashing
to the floor. The prank had been deliberate. The class, anticipating
this embarrassing result, roared with laughter.
Of course Mr. Keller tried to help, by demanding that those
responsible come forward. He even tried to coax the new girl into
identifying who did it; but she just sat there on the floor, tears
running down her face as the laughter echoed throughout the room.
Perhaps she knew there would be no salvation from these
degrading acts of peer abuse.
I can still picture those cocky classmates, who thought they
were so much better than everyone else. Of course now, as an
adult, I realize they were only cowards whose coolness depended
on the validation of the others in their clique. And when I think of
them now, I wonder if they ever felt guilty for what they did to her,
but I doubt it.
Perhaps one day they'll feel the hurt through the broken heart of
a child or grandchild; and maybe then they'll realize the devastating
effects that verbal abuse and childhood pranks can
cause. The name-calling, the feeling of being ostracized, of not
fitting in may not kill like a gun, or pierce like a knife, but the
damage it does can rob the dignity of the human spirit and,
sometimes for the victim, the memories linger on.
Violence is becoming an epidemic in our schools. These days,
more and more victims are fighting back, with deadly results. And
now, in hoping to quell all the tension, and outrage from parents,
officials are opening up their eyes to what effect bullying has on
students who are driven to the brink of despair.
My heart breaks for children whom live life in the shadow of
bullies and mean-spirited classmates.
Maybe it's because I was that new kid in Mr. Keller's class.
Kathy Whirity
kathywhirity @ yahoo.com
Kathy Whirity lives in Chicago where she shares her life and
love with her husband Bill, their two daughters, Jaime and Katie,
and two rambunctious retrievers, Holly and Hannah. Her
inspirational musings and thought provoking sentiments, on family
life, are published in a weekly column she writes for an area
newspaper. Kathy welcomes your letters. You may reach her at:
kathywhirity @ yahoo.com
You are encouraged to write to the authors to let them know
what you think of their story. Have a comment on today's story?
Send it to: moderator @ write2theheart.com
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Letters From Our Readers
Thank you for the piece by Janice Price - a great reminder that
we walk by faith. I have a niece who has been diagnosed with
SMA - Spinal Muscular Atrophy, the same condition her big sister,
Brooke, has. It's been a testing of our faith for sure. But praise the
Lord, she is showing no symptoms of the disease! Oh, and her
name? Faith, of course!
Donna J. Shepherd
Devotionals by Donna
http://donnashepherd.com/
Military Prayer Reminder
As you read over this list of names, please take a moment to
pray for these young people and their families:
Chris Speir
Tim Speir
Alan
Todd Holland
Graham
William
Julie Sagel
Jessie
Marshal Thompson
Jason
Eric Hernandez
Kristin Danielson
Ryan
Larry Miele
Daniel
Amy
John
Joanne
Gary Boardwine
Josh
Hadassah
Chanz Wackerly
Robert Henderson
David Habighurst
Tonia
Melissa Bair
Matthew Nutter
Nick Nation
Seth Jarrell
Please continue to pray for our country, our leaders, and
our troops at this time. If you have loved ones in the military,
or who are being called to go overseas, send their names
(first and last or first only) to be included in our prayer
reminder.
Cheryl’s Corner
Sometimes, I still surprise me with how dumb I can be! The
other night I was thinking about the light fixtures in the living
room. I was trying to figure out a way I could update them without
spending a lot of money. The ones I want are costly. An idea hit
me for the one on the dining room side. Just maybe I could paint it
and turn it over. I decided to check it out to see if it could be done.
I stepped onto a chair, but it wasn't high enough, so I stepped
onto the edge of the trestle table. As I stepped up I didn't notice
that even though I was pushing my body up with my legs, I wasn’t
getting any higher. The table had started tilting downward. When
things on the table started rolling down to me, I knew I was in
trouble. I tried to quickly step back to the chair but the table had
come back so far that all I could do was hit the back of the chair
sending my foot through the back slats.
I fell good and hard hitting my head, scratching my body and
trapping my foot in the chair. Jeremy had to come to my rescue
because I couldn't get my foot out of the chair no matter how I
turned it. As I lay on the floor trying to get my dignity back and
thanking God for no permanent damage, a little tune kept going
through my mind: Dumb da dumb dumb!
God bless,
Cheryl
Copyright © 2005, Write 2 the Heart
Nothing may be reproduced or published without
the written permission of the individual author or
copyright owner. All rights belong to the authors.
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