Words Hurt

[Guest guest]

Let's leave the movie world - it is so unreal anyway . Let's start working

on words in general. That old kids saying : Sticks and stones will break

my bones but words can never hurt me! WRONG!!!!!

And here we CAN make a difference.

LET me tell you a short story: I have a family member, whose mother died

when he was 3yo. At 6 his father remarried. There were three brothers and

then there were 6 brothers - all bigger and older than the 6 yo. His new

name became STUPID> He knew that at school he had another name, but he

never answered to it. People never knew why he didn't talk in school. At

age 9, a more perceptive teacher took him aside and talked TO him and WITH

him. She found out about the step mother and her children who called him

STUPID. She also told the story in school to all the teachers and to all

the students(no HIPPA in the '40's.. From that day forward, many of the

people at that school became a circle of support for this young man. I know

this is a true story, because it is my husband's story. BTW - his uncle was

superintendent of schools and never knew - the wicked stepmother was all

sweetness when people were present - called him dear and sweetie.

HE has never allowed people (including our children) to use put down nouns

(stupid, ugly, four eyes, race epithets, slander, ugly talk) around him or

his. HE feels it to his soul to this day. And he is now retired - he has

never forgotten that he was the boy who forgot his name and thought it was

stupid.