Stand Up to Defend the Bullied

Others on my friends' list have been sharing their stories of being bullied. And although I was severely bullied in junior high, that's not the story I want to tell today. Let me tell you instead of bullying that was prevented.

I was in high school--I don't remember what year. When had a test in math, and girl in my class--let's call her Karen--had forgotten to study. She decided to skip class, hope the teacher believed she was absent, and take the test tomorrow. I didn't think that was quite fair to those of us who had studied, so when the teacher asked if anyone knew where Karen was, I told her that Karen was skipping class because she hadn't studied. (I know, probably none of my business, but I remember feeling very strongly that her taking an extra day to study was unfair.)

When Karen heard what I'd done, she was livid. I heard her shouting that she was going to kill me, and given that she was a lot bigger and stronger than I was, she probably could have. But when she started to come at me, her best friend--let's call her Carmen--got in between us, looked Karen right in the eye (or in the chin; Carmen was tiny) and said, "Mysid just told the truth, so leave her alone."

Karen just stopped dead in her tracks, turned on her heel, and walked away from me. She could have made my life hell, but instead she never did a thing to me. And that, my friends, can happen when people stand up to defend the bullied. Thank you, Carmen, wherever you are.