Denial - ain't just a river in Egypt!

"One million kids are bullied every week, inside and outside of school." - Beatbullying (http://www.beatbullying.org/)

People are affected by bullying all over the world everyday. It doesn't matter how old you are; there are stories of bullying from nursery all the way up to the work place, and beyond. A few months ago I sent out a questionnaire specifically aimed at young people between the ages of 10 and 21, regarding bullying and body image. The results were startling. The majority of young people who took part have been bullied in some way, but more disturbingly only a few admitted to bullying someone else. If so many people are being bullied then where are all these bullies?

The definition of a Bully from the online dictionary is:
'A person who uses strength or power to harm or intimidate those who are weaker.'

None of us like to think ourselves as bullies, but the truth is that sometime in our lives for whatever reason we will find ourselves in that position. It's a hard thing to admit because we all think we're 'Goody-two-shoes' and better than the 'Baddies.' The problem with this is there's no such thing as goodies and baddies. You only find those in the movies! Everyone has a choice whether or not to stand up to bullying or be a bully but sadly you have no choice at all as to whether you will become a victim.

This is such a massive problem and the question is who will sort it out? The answer is simple; all of us together. If we are all honest with ourselves and each other, this is a good starting point. We must remember that the temptation to bully someone is in all of us and there are many reasons to why we start this 'campaign of terror', making other peoples lives a misery and even driving them to self harm, mental illness and suicide. You only need to read the newspapers to see that there are numerous accounts of tragedies.

The problem will never be completely solved because of human nature but we must not give in or give up. 

Bullies do what they do for a reason. They themselves are often insecure, victims of bullying themselves and may have difficult home lives. We all need help when we make mistakes and wrong decisions. This is where we need good friends who will be honest with us and support us while we get back on track. 

Aesop (a famous Greek fabulist/story teller) wrote a story called  'The Sun and the North Wind' and this fable explains the power of warmth and love and how it always wins over the cold and forceful winds of anger. The clip below is an exert from the 2002 film 'Goodbye Mr Chips' where Aesops fable is used to illustrate a different way of dealing with a particular bully. 
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qh63lip0LCk