Bullying is everywhere!

 

Last week we had a little episode where my son was bullied in our neighborhood.  Some bigger kids held him down and stole his shoes and it ended with my son crying and having a fat lip.  That was really hard as a mother to stay calm.  First, I comforted my son and took care of him and thought about how to handle the situation.  Luckily, I have a great neighbor and before I could even respond she had her son at my front porch to apologize.  The kid that really hurt him never did come and we have just decided we can't be around him.  My son was so sad because this was one of his best friends doing this.  I told this kid that he was being a bully and that was not ok with me.  I told him I would give him one more chance, but would not allow it.  Anytime you don't let someone do what they want (my son didn't want to play and wanted to leave) that is bullying.  We are back on good terms, but it made me think about it in our lives. 

When you think about people being bullied you think about kids at school.  But the more I think about it the more I realize it is all around us and can be hard to deal with as adult too.  Have you ever had someone at work who treats you bad?  It makes it hard especially if it is your boss.  It is hard to know how to stand up for yourself without jeopardizing your career.  I think "work bullies" might be the hardest kind to deal with.

 

I have also had experiences where people use "church" as a way to bully me.  It is hard to deal with a "church bully".  I love church and try really hard to choose the right and follow my leaders, but sometimes people want us to do things because that is what they want and they use the church to pressure people. That is not ok! 

 

When I was a child I was already much taller than everyone and I did not like bullies.  I took it upon myself to protect the weak. Sometimes this caused the bully to say mean things to me, but that was alright.  I have jumped in the middle of fights to protect kids. It is harder as a mother and wife to defend my family.  I can't be with them everywhere. So whether you are at work or playing outside, let us join together and stop the bullying.  Stand up to the people who are hurting, speaking mean, making fun of someone or trying to pressure people to do what they want.  Bullying isn't allowed in any form.