Summer vacation has officially started in my house. In a way, I'm glad. I don't have to see my daughter come through the door, head down, shoulders slumped, to find out about a bully teasing her or throwing a ball at her. I've pondered the idea of homeschooling, but she's against it. And in a way, I am as well. I love the thought of a one-on-one with my daughter, teaching her, being with her, but I'm not sure that's the way I want to go. I would like for her to stand up for herself. As she grows older, she will have to do this. I also don't want the bullies to win. Why should they get the run of the school? So, what I'm thinking about doing is helping her stand up for herself. I will check in every day to make sure things are going okay. If I have to go to the school every day, I will. I'd love to find out why a bully does what he/she does. What's his/her story?
In my book, Bullied to Death, Sophia stands up for herself by posting her bullies' pictures on her blog. She stands up to them. That's what I'd like all children to do who are bullied.
I'm thinking about a series to Bullied to Death--the next book being in the POV of the bully. What do you think?
Let's unite and stop this once and for all.
Ithink that would make for a fascinating book. Told from the point of view of the bully. I hope you'll do it. June
ReplyDeleteI love the idea of telling it in the bully POV. We had a bully situation and after much prayer, and help from the school and bus driver, the bully eventually became friendly with my daughter, cautioning her to wear sunscreen on sunny days. The year before, he was threatening to punch her if she didn’t give up her bus seat. He later sat next to my daughter at the science fair and I took note of his project, the only one there that had ZERO parent involvement with lots of scratch outs and all hand-written (rather than printouts from a computer). The next year, he told my daughter how he was regularly hit by his older sister (in other words, he was bullied too). It gave me a new understanding of why God tells us not to judge. He knows what we don’t. Sometimes there are kids who are just plain evil … And then there are ones like this boy, who need love and guidance, but seem to be bereft of each. It would be interesting to hear his story as he searches for acceptance and finds it with a gang of bullies … then, hopefully, realizes the deeper emptiness there.
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