Sticks and stones may break bones...

Natalie Esparza
11/4/2012

Sticks and stones may break bones...

There is a reason that schools are so adamant about the "no bullying" policy. Words hurt. They do. They can cut so deep that they leave psychological scars that a person carries for the rest of their life. You have to try and let go -get over it - and some teens aren't equip with the resources to know how to do this in a healthy manner. There is a reason teen suicide, pregnancy, drinking, cutting, and drugs are becoming major problems in the United States. They are the results of what we teens have believed to be temporary (or not so temporary) coping mechanisms.

I have lost several friends - Micheal Molenaar, and Lawrence Shen - to suicide. They believed life was too difficult to handle, and that they were worthless. People do not just believe this over night. It has to be drilled into their mind, over a long period of time. They feel like there is no other way to find peace. They were bullied 24/7 for years...I observed it. Although I do not EVER approve of what they did, I can see where they were coming from. Words hurt, they are more powerful than people would like to believe. The smallest insult, no matter what the pretext, or how jokingly said, can be extremely painful.

Just the other day, I was working the drive through at chick-fil-a. My week had been pretty bad as it was, but then, I had customer after angry customer. One went as far as to say "f*** off" after I told him to have a nice day. This shocked me; it hurt me. I didn't even know the man, and I would probably never see him again. But it really did ruin my day, I was emotionally scarred. If that can happen to me from a stranger, imagine how much worse it would be from a friend or family member.

Now, words also have an opposite effect. When someone hears words of encouragement  a compliment, a thank you, it can seriously mean the world to them. Just because you "think" something nice in your head, if you don't say it out loud it is no good to anyone. Next time, when you think of something nice to say. SAY IT. You never know if you will see that person again. Things happen, life is short - watch what you say, and how you say it. You never know what heart you may be breaking, or day you may be making.