PEOPLE TALK…
People talk...a lot, and communication is a very vital part of life. Talking with each other, while a very healthy and necessary thing, becomes a very unhealthy thing when people start talking about each other; worse yet when others believe what is being said and use it to hurt one another. Why do some people feed on gossip? Maybe it tastes good, maybe it’s low in calories or easy to swallow or just maybe, for them, it’s all about the drama.
While it’s true that sticks and stones can break your bones, words can very much hurt you. Contrary to popular belief, bullying is seldom about power, it’s about making others feel like less so they can feel like more to better themselves in their own minds. Bullies are generally very unhappy people and tend to have little to no self-esteem because they have been hurt or are being hurt and/or wronged in some way. They need to lash out at anyone and everyone in their path that they perceive as doing better than they are, having more money than they do or are more popular and/or successful.
Remember the adage, “No one can make you feel bad without your permission?” That is the phrase that finally put things into perspective for me back when I was bullied. People talk...they always will, but it’s how you deal with that that matters. If you are being gossipped about and/or bullied on the internet, you have the power to remove yourself from social media sites and/or block and remove these people for good. On some sites you can even report them to the site admin. In your world at home, at work, and with friends, you get to choose who you associate with and who you invite into your personal circle of friends. If someone doesn’t treat you right, it’s up to you to either talk to them or remove them from your life. Remember, it’s actually you who has the power.
While having grown up in a very small town in Northern California, and also having lived in a very small town in Virginia for a time with my Great Aunt, I was around so many people who talked about each other all the time. It was also apparent that we were talked about as well. It was almost a sport...one person would start the conversation and the other person would try to one-up it with better gossip. What I learned from all of that as I grew older was to be kind to people, even behind their backs. Compliment them when you see them and if you have to say things about them when they are not there, say nice things. This creates a very positive pattern and you end up feeling very proud of yourself for the way you treat others.
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