Thursday, May 24, 2012

Poetry Jam - "Bullied"


Bullied

I hold my breath,
close my eyes,
disappear inside
my heartbeat
become twelve again,

"I can't,
I'm stupid,
a dork..."

viscous lies,
believed.

Vibrantly alive today
these voices, I suppose,
are victims, too.

Who taught them
to ridicule,
to hate, to bully?

Off I send
my sweet children
confident, happy, secure

but for how long?

by Margaret Bednar, Art Happens 365, May 24, 2012

This is for "Poetry Jam - Bullied"  Most of us have been there -- being on one side of the fence or the other.  So many dear sweet children leave a loving home, secure in who they are and eager to explore life... and their self-esteem is trampled all because they might be a little different, might just not fit in "perfectly" with those around them.  When, if ever, will we ever learn?  I like to think it gets better with adulthood, but I often think we just learn to blend in...

18 comments:

Brian Miller said...

it is hard...my son was bullied this year...and the teacher would dismiss it...ironically the day we filed a letter with the administration he was hit...not bad luckily but it def lit a fire there...it is rampant...some schools are doing a great job educating on it but many are still scared themselves...the end of this is foreboding...

Helen said...

It makes me sad to think about children and adults who are bullied. Hopefully the emphasis on bullying behaviors will help stem the growing tide of ugliness.

Mary said...

It definitely is very sad when children who are bullied believe the vicious things said about them and also sad when the bully can convince OTHERS to believe those things too.

It IS very sad when we send our happy, secure children off to school, thinking they will be okay...only to have them have the possibility of being picked on by a bully!

A thought-provoking write.

Daydreamertoo said...

Bullying is so difficult to know how to handle. Most schools although they are willing to help stamp it out really can't do too much about it anyway. The bully learns this behaviour mostly at home from their parents, and sadly, whereas a clip around the ear used to be acceptable from any adult who felt you had been disrespectful now, it's all politically correctness and spare the rod. While I don't agree with anyone slapping anyone just because they think they should, I also don't believe any child should be rewarded for behaving badly either.
Being bullied is no joke and can leave such mental scars on someone all through their lives. Sometimes the only way to beat a bully is to beat them at their own game but, it takes courage and sometimes makes things ten times worse too if you don't win. Sad stae of affairs isn't it when bullying is so rampant still, even in this day and age.
RYN: That wasn't the go-cart we made I found those image son Google, but, it looked very similar to that one...at least it worked!! LOL :)

Mary B. Mansfield said...

Also one of my greatest fears...a great write!

Judy Roney said...

Such a powerful poem. Universal poem that holds the fears for all of us. I'm so glad the light is being shined on this terrible beat down of a person's self worth.

Judy Roney said...

Such a powerful poem. Universal poem that holds the fears for all of us. I'm so glad the light is being shined on this terrible beat down of a person's self worth.

Grace said...

I agree with you on the lost of innocence of children when dealing with the harsh reality of getting along with others. Lovely write ~

izzy said...

This world is hard enough without any extra shoving and pushing!
Hopefully if your kids run into it they will speak out- Happy Memorial Day.

ann @ studiohyde said...

What an emotional post!..my heart goes out to those who still suffer from 'the jealous brigade'!

Maude Lynn said...

This perfectly articulates my fear.

Sherry Blue Sky said...

A beautiful and harrowing poem. It is so hard, as a parent, to trustingly send one's children off each day, hoping against hope they will not be harmed.

Christine said...

probably the worst part of parenting, was sending my children off to school when I knew there would be times they didn't feel safe, how do you teach your children to be strong?

Rinkly Rimes said...

My son was small. I dreaded that he might be bullied but he wasn't.A sense of humour must have helped.But this was thirty years ago. Things have changed in the world.

Justine said...

this is such a common problem all over the world, love your words on it.

Fireblossom said...

I took infinite shit when I was in school, but was taught not to fight. I wish that I had ignored my parents and defended myself.

My two closest friends today were bullied as girls. I hate it that anyone treated them badly.

One of my biggest pet peeves is adults who call bullying "teasing". That's such a deceptively gentle word. I wonder how many adults who dismiss bullying would feel the same way if they went to work and were assaulted and abused on a daily basis. They would be calling their lawyers in a New York minute.

I just finished a novel by Jodi Picoult called "Nineteen Minutes" about a school shooter who was bullied. It's chilling stuff. I don't know what the solution is, but I know that dismissing it is wrong.

Ginnie Hart said...

Thanks for bringing this movie to my attention, Margaret. I will keep my eyes and ears open for it. It seems like this entire issue is getting bigger and bigger. Let's hope it comes to a head and something is done about it everywhere!

Sreeja said...

You bought it out so effectively...