20. Bullying

Such harsh words,
Such mean things to say,
Sticks and stones may break my bones
But words will never hurt me,
But they will,
People spit them out
Just as common as they’re own skin
They don’t realize they hurt so much,
The pain,
What made them do this?
You may never know,
Just wonder what they went through,
And they may never know
What you went through

It’s a terrible act
It’s a terrible fact
That all people do
Attacking others and leaving very few

Bullying is a disease
It will never cease
Destroying people with the simplest of ease
We have to stop this
I ask you please!

In all schools, there are very distinct social groups. They cannot be broken or mingle, and they very rarely change drastically. As a general rule, people from different social groups don’t mix. And if they try to, they should be prepared to face some very rough times. There was a girl at my old school who did not have a group. She drifted at random, but didn’t fit in anywhere.

In the last year of elementary school I was bullied, and the people that bullied me had been my friends ever since I could remember. Sixth grade was one of the most difficult times of my life. They would find out things that were personal and that would hurt me if anyone found out about them.

I have seen a lot of bullying over the years. In recreation centers and in school. I’ve seen verbal and physical bullying. However, I have barely ever been bullied myself. This is my perspective on bullying. I have seen kids get beat up for wanting to play. I have seen kids get picked on for being bad at sports, for being smart, or for being gay.

Bullying on the Bus

By Ariel Watson
Brattleboro Area Middle School, Grade 7

I’ve witnessed a lot of bullying incidents. I’ve been the bully, the victim, and the bystander. There was one incident that was the worst because an older kid fought a younger kid.
I was riding the bus and a little third grader got on and sat right across from me, which was an older kid’s seat.

Bullying

By Owen Mayhew
Woodstock Union High School, Grade 12

Why live,
with fear and deprivation,
where people,
make others,
feel small,
to make themselves,
feel big.
What is the point,
who really cares?
What others think,
just ignore the stares.

Bully

By Candace Olevnik
Woodstock Union High School, Grade 12

My dark corner,
Safe from you.
Battered,
Broken,
Torn in two.
Your sticks cut skin,
Your stones break bones.
All doe no cause,
Just a sick, twisted joke.
Leave me be,
So what if I'm different.
I live,
Breath,
Feel,
Just like you.
So throw your sticks,
Throw your stones,
Your foul words.
Remember one thing,

I saw one once,
Its path devastated
Like a tornado.
I saw one once,
It stalked its victim
Like a lion in the grass.
It saw me once,
I was a coward
Fleeing like a mouse.
Then I saw
Who the real bully was.

The old stereotype:
big kid of the class,
not too bright,
a very big pain.
Uses his size
to strike fear in others.

Not so today.

The new breed:
Any size will do,
one trait is obvious.
slick with words,
a messed up mind,
manipulates others.

They are hard to stop;
they know the loopholes.
A punch in the face will do,
but the system won’t allow it

The tears streaming down the face.
The bruises on the body.
The form crinkled into fetal position.
The body is broken today
But the soul is forever torn.

It's not right.
It's corrupt.
It's immoral.
It's bullying.
It need to stop.

The Daily Read

By Matteo Bjornsson
Woodstock Union High School, Grade 10

As I get my daily news from the walls
Of the bathroom stalls,
I read so much needless hate
That the last user felt the need to make.
Why is it people need to declare such words at all,
In this meaningless place on the wall?

They put you down
To bring themselves up
To feel superiority
But does their anger
Their abuse
Make them any better?

Pulling others to your level
Doesn't move you up
It simply shows
You've yet to acknowledge
Your complete and utter
Defeat.

Reflection

By Rachel Sullivan
Burlington High School, Grade 11

"I hate you."
She looks up, startled, innocently wide eyes gazing back, astonished, into my own.
"Look at you. You're repulsive. How can I not hate you?"
She looks down, fingering the worn, tattered edges of her graying hoodie, her breath catching audibly in her throat.
"You're disgusting. I bet that hasn't been washed in weeks."
She looks up quickly, tears gathering at the corners of her eyes, making them shine in the harsh lighting.
"And lets not forget those jeans," I add, glancing down at the hole-riddled atrocities, "they really don't do anything for that pear shape you've got going on."
Her hands go immediately, almost protectively, to her midsection, causing her to double over slightly, shoulders hunching in shame.
I shake my head at her, "It's too bad none of those diets are working for you. Seriously. You must just have been a born cow, since you hardly eat anything."

Pebbles

By Bridget Iverson
Mount Mansfield Union High School, Grade 9

I'm laughing and
He's laughing
Too.

The insults are
Friendly, tossed like
Pebbles.
They hardly chip his
Smooth
Exterior
Shell.

It must not hurt
Because then
He'd ask us to
Stop.
Right?

I'm laughing to show it's a
Joke
And he's laughing
Alongside
Because it's just
Fun.

Right?

Sweet Revenge Never Tasted so Sour

By Julie Boyd
Woodstock Union High School, Grade 10

I see the blood drip off my knuckles
The knuckles of a kid sick of being
Sick of being taken advantage of
And pushed around by the big guys
But not today, today is my day
My day to push them around
To make them feel sick to their stomach
Make them hurt like they hurt me

I’ve been the victim of bullying. It was so long ago but it haunts me every day. I was in 6th grade so; it was about five years ago. Back when my daily school schedule was a block schedule and grades six through eight were combined.

There she stands
Hands in her pockets
There are her eyes
Bulging from their sockets

They well up in fear
As the boy draws near
Looking at the ground
Hearing every pound

The weight on her shoulders
Stronger than boulders
Weighing her down
And creating the frown
On the face of the boy
And her own.

The hallway was silent
They had all long gone
And they would not be back

Untitled

By Kelly Davis
Woodstock Union High School, Grade 10

Untitled

One hand rises to cover his sore eye, the other one quickly raises to the other
A firm hand is laid upon his shoulder forcing him stumbling backward
Laughter is heard in the distance, “c’mon kid fight back”
Words and letters are rushing inside his head, trying desperately to form complete thoughts

Sigh. Let it all out-Let out the secrets that have been holding you back.
Cry. Show how you feel, this moment is real, just like all of the other bad things.
Sing. Have a good time, you don’t have to rhyme, but if you do that’s ok too.
Love. For love is a gift, something to cherish not fear at all.

Bullying

By John Riker
Mount Saint Joseph's Academy, Grade 9

You can beat me,
Cuss and spit on me,
Push me,
But you don’t hurt me.
You bully me cause you can,
But you don’t understand.
I know you do it to feel big
Because someone at home
Never loved
Never cared
Never gave to you any respect.
So go ahead and push me cause tomorrow,
Ill still give you the respect,
Love,

Aggravation

By Nathan Beauregard
Benson Village School, Grade 8

One day,
I was aggravated,
Annoyed,
Bothered.
I had been called names,
Simple names.
Aggravation,
I could feel it,
Building up.
I couldn’t hold it.
I wouldn’t.
I wouldn’t stand for it.
Not any more.
I wanted to hit her,
But I couldn’t afford
The punishment.
So I turned my head,
And said a word,

He stomps into my room
His large, rough hands clasp me
I look away and sense my doom
Old and raspy, hatred I feel towards he.
I squirm and wince, I must resist
I’m not ready, nor am willing
He forces this upon me, pushing to persist
As I lie limp, my body feels the filling.

Bullies? We Don't Need Them!

By Basundhara Mukherjee
Frederick Tuttle Middle School, Grade 6

Hatred. Bullying. Bullies.

The Bully

By Jordan DiNapoli
Monkton Central School, Grade 5

One time there was a girl named Ilianna who got bullied by a kid named Bruno. (If your name is Bruno I was not thinking about you.)
It all started when Ilianna was at her school getting her lunch out of her locker. All of a sudden Bruno came up to her and stole her lunch.

Cheating

By Mindy Yeung
Hartford Memorial Middle School, Grade 8

One glance,
Then another.
I try to conceal my paper,
But their hungry eyes follow it like a cheetah stalking its prey.

I want them to stop,
But I can’t tell them.
They’ll think I’m selfish,
And I’ll drop a level of popularity.

They steal another quick glimpse at my paper,
And I submit.

Bullying happens everywhere
It isn’t very fair
Why do people do it
Just for sheer whit

The people getting bullied don’t find it funny
They hate it when you run away with their lunch money
Why do they deserve that
They hate it when you call them fat

Just because some don’t act the same
They shouldn’t be the one to blame
Why do people act that way