Sticks and Stones

We've all heard the saying, "sticks and stones may break my bones, but words can never hurt me".  It's usually something we say when someone has said something insulting or hurtful to us.  Think about this for a moment.  How often do physical wounds heal?  Pretty often, right?  Now think about the impact words can have.  A compliment or some other word of praise can really make your day wonderful, while something hurtful can completely ruin it.  Something truly harmful can stick with you for the rest of your life.

Physical injury from abuse usually heals.  It's the mental, emotional, and psychological pain that haunts someone for the rest of their lives.  "What did I do to deserve such punishment?"

• Suicide is the third leading cause of death among young people, resulting in about 4,400 deaths per year, according to the CDC. For every suicide among young people, there are at least 100 suicide attempts. Over 14 percent of high school students have considered suicide, and almost 7 percent have attempted it.

Let that sink in.  How many of these could have been prevented had someone just not been cruel? 

I'm sure many of you have heard the story recently about Jonathan Martin.  Just in case you haven't, let me give you the basics.  Martin used to be an offensive tackle for the Miami Dolphins.  He recently quit due to bullying and harassment from the hands of his fellow teammates.  And you thought bullying only happened to children?  How bad must it have been for a grown man to quit a job he loved so very much?  How much more hurtful would those kind of words been in the ears of a teenager or a child?

These cruel words, bullying and harassment, they are all said because we fear people who are "different" from us.  Different?  Tell me, who out there is exactly the same as you?  Anyone?  No?  Then this should never happen.  Everyone is different.