Life and Living

I grew up in the late 70s and 80s as well. And while we did not have to deal with the global measure of cyber bullying- some of us still had to deal with bullies.

I believe that bullies have been a part of society since it began. The problem has only recently come to light and attention because of cyber bullying. It saddens me that the chaos had to become this large before society decided it was time to deal with it. And yet some people still persist that it does not exist- or that those who are bullies are innocent because they don't see the behavior the moment they observe them.

- Mindy

Be prepared to receive something special.

Messages are being shared intending to give reality checks to bullies. As a survivor of school bullying I think it’s important to include ‘bully-mobs’. This is when a group some times and entire class ‘gang up’ on one student or a small group. Whether it’s 30 students in a classroom or millions of anonymous voices online- this mob mentality is not only dangerous- it is barbaric- it is evil to the core.

It happened to me in 6th grade. I remember getting to class and taking my seat. The next thing I knew my classmates were yelling and throwing things at me. It put me in tears quickly because I was already in pain. And I didn’t understand why they attacked me, or why our teacher stood by and did nothing.

I can’t say that it was all of my classmates- but to paraphrase the saying - ‘evil prospers where good people do nothing’. I still remember my words to them “what’s the matter with you people? Can’t you respect some one whose father just died?”

This was a defining moment in my life.

The sad part is- not one person knew 'me', who I was as a person and what I was like. I was the bully's little sister, I was the target because they wouldn't stand up to my siblings. And I believe this made me an an easy target for others seeking to unleash their own pain on another.

I pray to God for His help in forgiving my tormentors; some have come and asked for my forgiveness and others have apologized.
Some have been sincere and yet others have not. They know who they are so there is no need to name them.

I work every day to heal and recover from the pain, the anger, and the depression. The hardest moments are when another bully, a new bully comes in to my life. It's like conditioning- the old habits and reactions return. And the cycle goes around again.

What I will never understand are the people who place their allegiance with the bullies. They know what that person is like, they know what is being done to who and why. And yet they turn a blind eye or slip on rose-colored glasses to that person's ways. In the same turn the vilify the bully's victim- justifying the conflict for their own rationalizing.

Some people will even go to the extreme of reversing the roles. They turn the victim into the bully and the bully in to the victim. In one case it was the bully who did this. And the friends jumped to support.

I understand the fetish to control, to dominate - I get that. What I don't understand is the bully or the need to destroy some one mentally or socially. What I will never understand is the mob mentality- the willingness to give up ones individuality for the sake of what the group is doing.

When you believe that the group is more important than the individual- it's my opinion that a person has lost themselves. And in the end, when we each face our maker- we will stand alone to answer for our ways. It is not for the greater good or the means of the many that will determine our fate. For God sees each individual in the collective. And each one of those souls is separate and precious to Him.

It is my belief that God will not count the size of your family or how many friends you have; He will count your ways with them. Every person we have hurt, every pain we have cause, every lie we have told, every distortion of truth, and every betrayal we have committed- He will count against us. Whether it is against another or ourselves doesn't matter. He will count it.

As bleak as this sounds- He will forgive. It's my understanding that if we want His forgiveness- we must forgive. And He will, through his grace, give us the strength to seek forgiveness and to forgive.

To those who have asked me for forgiveness or said 'I'm sorry' - I have one question for you. Have you forgiven yourself?

I read an article blog post tonight that could very well have been written about me. I’m an Introvert. I always have been and I’m pretty certain that I will always be one.

The problem is society doesn’t accept this. Somewhere along the lines it was decided that we introverts needed to be converted in to Extroverts. I’m willing to wager that it was some one or group of Extroverts who made this decision.

To my Extrovert friends – take a read and perhaps you’ll gain some insight as to the myths and truths about us Introverts.

To my Introvert friends- take a read a perhaps, as I did, you’ll find relief in knowing that some one, somewhere, knows and understands the truth in each of us.

To my Undecided friends- take a read and perhaps you’ll learn something as well.

Enjoy the article my friends- I know that I did.

Carl King: 10 Myths About Introverts

Laziness is doing nothing S L O W L Y

Received a link to this article from a fellow member of the Spaceport - Thanks RV

MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. — NASA's planet-hunting Kepler spacecraft has confirmed the discovery of its first alien world in its host star's habitable zone — that just-right range of distances that could allow liquid water to exist — and found more than 1,000 new explanet candidates, researchers announced today (Dec. 5).

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