Bullying

I don't know what the latest phenom with all this 'bullying' is but I truly believe it has gotten way out of control. I read articles on it and even see commercials geared towards bullying. What I want to share is that it is completely natural to encounter bullies both when you are a child and once you become an adult. However it is most important that you learn to advocate on your own behalf in some way. I believe that we are currently enabling bullies and sensationalizing it. The truth of the matter is that being bullied is not so bad.... the best part of it is once you grow up and turn your situation around.. its when you used to be fat and now you are skinny.. you used to wear big glasses now you have contacts.... you used to be the one he didn't know existed now he is chasing you down the street... However our kids can never learn the circle of life if we blow this portion out of proportion. If you are encountering a violent bully.. I advise you to show him who is boss.... for instance, I will give you an example. Embarrassment always seems to work. When I was in High school I encountered an upperclassman named Tia that was especially mean.. she was boisterous and rude, but no one would step up to her.... so one day I had the great idea to compose a poem and post it up on all the vending machines in our school. Our classmates read it and word traveled around school.. She was embarrassed and tried to make a comeback in the same way, but poetry was not her forte as it is mine. After that.. I didn't have any more run ins with her... So my suggestion to kids going through bullying is find a creative way to deal with it, but don't shy away or internalize it. We have all been through it, and we survived, you can too.