Sticks and stones will break your bones, but words will never hurt you. What if the only thing that is hurting me though is the words? Sticks and stones leave bruises on your skin, but the words are the ones that bruise you on the inside. The words slowly eat away at your self-esteem and your heart, until you’re so desperate you do whatever it takes to get rid of the pain or feel loved. So many people in the world, in your life and even your closest friends and family, plaster on a fake smile and then when they’re alone they do things to themselves that will later be regretted. Words they can be so small, but can have such a big impact on your life and the way you think about yourself. Words. Slut. Gay. Lesbian. Nerd. Geek. Try hard. Ginger. Each of these words is so small and is so effortlessly used to make fun of people or to say something is gay. But, what happens when you call someone gay or something gay or someone a nerd? Do you think about what they do to themselves when they go home? Or do you laugh it off as simply joking around? Not knowing that what you just called them could be the final string before they snap and do something that will change their life forever.
I know that in the past I called paraphernalia that I didn’t like gay or stupid or that I labeled people as nerds and I regret it. It’s not until people label you as a certain word that it hits home and you realize what you did was wrong. When cheerleaders are thought of the first word that comes to mind for most is sluts. Why though? Not all cheerleaders look like the Dallas Cowboy cheerleaders and we don’t wear competition uniforms nonstop. They are simply competition uniforms. If you look past the booty shorts, spandex, tight shirts that don’t cover your stomach, low cut shirts, and you look into a person’s heart you would realize that the one word that cheerleaders are labeled as is simply a label not anything beyond that.
If words were used to define a person, what would your words be? Would you want to know what people say about you behind your back? Do you think all people like you or hate you? Do you just assume things and not find out the facts? High school years they can be the best of times and they can be the worst of times. The way you make your experience in high school is by being open minded and thinking before you speak. Sticks and stones will break your bones, but words will never hurt you. Words won’t hurt you until you’re the one the words people are saying attack you and leave you feeling hopeless, depressed, unloved. Words a five letter word with a definition so immense and vast that nobody can define what they will really mean until the words are hurting you.
