“What happened here?” Tranae asked her friend looking around at the splatters of blood on the ground. “Girl, where have you been? Didn’t you hear about the big fight between Andrea and Mia earlier?” “No, what happened?” “Well as far as I know, Andrea made some joke about Mia and the next thing Mia was all over her. I think she broke Andrea’s nose…”
It’s almost with a sense of fear that I turn on the news these days. There have been so many senseless acts of violence among teenagers lately that it seems to be becoming an epidemic. Where does it end? What are young people so angry about and isn’t there a better way to solve conflicts than through physical violence?
Sometimes simple things like teasing act as triggers. For example in the scenario at the beginning Andrea made a joke about Mia, which may seem pretty easy to ignore right? However, you may tease someone and say something as a joke but that person may have been teased all week and your joke may be one more than she feels she can take. This in no way excuses Mia’s violent response but let’s be real, if you tease your own family members constantly and they get tired, you’re going to get a reaction and often times it’s not a gentle one.
So before things get physical, if you’re being teased or picked on and it’s gotten to the place where you really can’t take it anymore, don’t try taking matters into your own hand, like Mia did. Talk to someone in authority at your school, also as much as possible avoid being around the person or people who are bothering you. On the flip side, if you’re the one doing the teasing or picking on others and you think it’s funny, it’s not! There’s a difference between harmless bantering between friends and jokes that are designed to hurt or get a reaction out of someone.
It’s so easy to get angry and lash out but what about the aftermath when someone is injured severely, in the hospital, or worst case scenario dead? In the aftermath most people are sorry but I’m sorry offers little comfort to someone who has been hurt unnecessarily or to family members who are mourning the premature death of their loved ones. There is a song I like, part of it says,
Let there be peace on earth and let it begin with me.
Let there be peace on earth the peace that was meant to be.
Jill Jackson Miller, 1955
If each one of us would say, let peace begin with me we’d have happier homes, safer schools and more peaceful communities. Remember, everyone gets angry. The angry feelings are sometimes quite justified but how do you express it? Ephesians 4:26-27 admonishes us: If you are angry, do not let it become sin. Get over your anger before the day is finished. Do not let the devil start working in your life. In other words, don’t allow your anger to cause you to do something that you will regret.
GT Magazine March/May 08
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2 comments:
Such an awesome post my friend.
It is so true. I remember when the neighborhood bullies kept teasing my sister every.single.day - one day I lost it and beat up the boy that was older and bigger than me. I didn't care. I know that it was not the right reaction, but can you do when your sister is only 4 and the boy was 11.
I think you gave the right advice - step away and stay clear of the bullies.
Thank you for sharing.
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