Rain
Mom and Dad told me the news. I looked at them as they waited for my response.
"Rain," dad looked at me questionably.
"Can I still work on my puzzle?" I asked him.
"Yes," he said.
"Okay." I shrugged as I got up and went into the other room.
"That went better than I expected," he said to Mom.
I don't know what my parents expected. They were coming to school. Okay, but it's not a big deal.
The next day, I got up, did my routine, and had breakfast. Antonio picked me up and took me to school. We went to the room and worked on the puzzle.
While we worked on the puzzle, Dad called many people into the office and also called their parents. He started with Ella and Darcy.
They sat in the office while he met with their parents.
"Expulsion? You can't do this," Ella's father exclaimed.
"Would you like charges brought against your daughter for assaulting mine?" He asked him. Her dad looked at him. "I didn't think so. Your daughters have exhibited childish and poor behavior. They have bullied and assaulted a student and others. While that may be acceptable behavior for you, it's not acceptable for me."
"Fine, but expect a lawsuit," he huffed as he stood up.
As they were about to leave, Dad said, "That's fine, but expect a counter lawsuit consider Autism falls under the Disability Act of 1990. While you may run around threatening a lawsuit, I can counter one of mine. Do you honestly think people will deal with someone that sues a family with a child that has a disability? Think long and hard about this."
They looked at him. The one thing Dad says is knowledge is power. While most were afraid to take a stand, he wasn't, not with us.
After Ella and Darcy, he expelled Lyle along with a few others. He put in place a strict policy regarding bullying. He also held an assembly.
I didn't sit with everyone because I couldn't deal with the vast crowd. I stayed off to the sidelines with Mom while Dad walked onto the stage.
"Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen, for anyone who does not know me, my name is Principal Hardwick. I will be your principal. Most of you know my daughter, Rainbow Hardwick, and my sons, Luke and Cole Hardwick. Most you, I've had in first grade," he told everyone.
"Now, I called this assembly regarding bullying. Most of you know what bullying is, and if you aren't aware, let me explain it to you. It's calling names, touching others inappropriately, making fun of someone, teasing, and harassing anyone online. At some point, people bully a person in their life, and it hurts the person bullied."
Everyone sat there and listened to him.
"As of today, that all stops. Bullying is a serious offense. We will expel anyone caught doing so. You should be able to come to school judgment-free and be able to learn. Now, I want to introduce you to someone special. I made a special call, and they agreed. Please welcome Hope Morgan," he introduced an older woman.
I stood there as she walked out onto the stage. A guy followed her and stood next to her as he took a microphone. Then she signed, and he spoke into the microphone.
"Hello, my name is Hope Morgan, and I'm deaf. This person is my brother Charlie, and he will translate for me. I have been deaf all my life. I wasn't born with that little hair in your ears, and my eardrums never developed properly. I was in a special school most of my life, but tired of feeling different."
I stepped forward as her hands fascinated me.
"I went to regular high school and was the victim of bullying. People mocked me, made fun of me, referred to me as being retarded. All of that was far from the truth. I was brilliant, and I didn't take shit from anyone."
Everyone laughed.
"See, I have a sense of humor and feelings. I'm deaf, not stupid. I was lucky enough to meet my husband and best friends because of it. They were two idiots," she sighed as everyone laughed.
"But they understood that having a disability is not a bad thing, but bullying others is terrible. We are all different and unique, which makes us amazing in our way. I don't know what it's like not to be deaf since I've been this way all my way. I also have a crazy sense of humor because humor is essential to get you through rough times. Trust me; my husband knows first hand."
I stared at her.
"When Mr. Hardwick asked me to speak, I figured why not because we all need a Rainbow in our lives, especially after a storm," she signed as she turned to me and smiled. This reference made me smile.
"Be kind, be humble, and love each other," she finished.
Everyone started clapping, and I covered my ears as she waved to all of them. Then she walked off the stage towards me. The man followed her.
She looked at me and signed, "Hello, Rainbow. It's an honor to meet you."
"Really?" I looked at her surprise.
"Yes, stay beautiful," Hope smiled as I smiled back at her. She gently touched my hands as she left.
I looked at mom, "She's different like me."
"Yep, she is," she smiled.
"That's so cool," I said excitedly. My mom smiled. There were different people like me out there. For once, I didn't feel so different.
After the assembly, Antonio walked over to me.
"Antonio, did you see? Someone is different like me and wanted to meet me," I said, excitedly.
"I saw," he smiled. I hugged him. To me, this moment was a big deal. Maybe not to others, but me, it was.
"She even talked with her hands."
"That's sign language," he explained to me.
"I think sign language is cool. Don't you?" I asked Antonio.
"Very cool," he agreed.
I had seen no one talk with their hands. I liked that Hope used her hands. It was beyond cool to me.
While people talked about the assembly, the concept of sign language caught my attention. It amazed me how people did that, and people understood them. When I got home, I got on the computer and searched for sign language.
For hours, I looked at pictures and read. Whatever I didn't understand, Antonio explained it to me. For me, this is amazing. I wanted to learn sign language.
If I can learn how to tie my shoes, ride a bike, make my bed, I can learn sign language. Antonio worked with me on it. My family watched us as he helped me move my fingers and hands to create letters.
"Rain, watch," he said as he signed and spoke, I love you. I followed him, doing it back. We smiled at each other as he leaned over and kissed me.
"Love exists in every language, doesn't it?" I asked him.
"Yeah, it does. No matter what language or world, love is universal," he answered.
"I like that." We looked at each other as my family looked at him.
It didn't matter who was in love; It didn't see the differences. Love doesn't judge or discriminate, and it's a fantastic feeling. It brought people together and made us whole. I think love is essential. Way better than hate and stronger. If you want to destroy hate, then give respect. It's the only thing that makes us the same. That's how I see it.