My Reason Why.

I was told by a very wise person to write what I know. Unfortunately, I have a great deal of knowledge on the subject of bullying and how much bullying can affect one's life. We all know that bullying a a hot-button topic these days, but for those of us who lived through this torture, day in and day out, this is not a bandwagon we're jumping on, it's something that we, as victims, feel very strongly about. This is why I wrote and published my novella, The Snake Pit: Jr. High Can Be Torture. 

Now, for those of you who haven't read this little gem of a book, shame on you, and you might want to stop reading this post right now, for there will be spoilers. 

Now, The Snake Pit is written in a very different way, for a very specific purpose. It's written from the point of view of all involved, in interview form. I did this to show how different people can all see the same thing, yet interpret it in a totally different way.

The Bully:  Sees nothing wrong with what she's doing. She's beautiful, popular and entitled.

The Best Friend:  Sees exactly what's going on and tries desperately to get someone to listen.

The Teachers:  All see what's happening, but figure "kids will be kids"  Ignore it and it will all go away.

The Principal: Refuses to see what's right in front of him. Protects the bully, rather than the victim.

The classmates:  All see what's happening, thankful that they are the not the ones being bullied. All stand by and say nothing.

This is not a feel-good story. You will not walk away after reading this with a restored faith in  your fellow man. What I hope people take from this story is a little bit of awareness. Some compassion, perhaps, and the knowledge that bullying is not a "kids-will-be-kids" problem anymore. Bullying can cause long-term damage, damage that, unfortunately, cannot be repaired. Frankly, it's war on our nations children, and children shouldn't have to die because they don't fit in.