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Along Life’s Way
No Time for
Bullies: a Fable
By Lois E. Wilson
It was the second week of the school year. The teacher had noticed that
there was at least one case of bullying in the class. She decided to
deal with it promptly.
Two twelve-year-old boys were always at odds. They didn’t share
friends. In fact, the older boy, Guy, had many buddies with whom he did
everything. He called his group, Guy’s Gang. They loved to skateboard.
The other boy, Bill, had few friends. No one sat with him or talked to
him in the lunch room.
Guy liked doing a hatchet job at Bill’s expense. He laughed at him for
bringing his own lunch. He made fun of his choice of clothes and that
Bill didn’t ride the bus because his mother picked him up after school.
Guy’s Gang dubbed Bill “Shorty the Nerd” and chanted that phrase to
taunt him whenever others were around.
The teacher told the class, “I want to know all about you. Did you
realize that you are the only ‘you’ on this planet? And that is good.
Can you imagine how boring it would be if everyone looked alike,
dressed alike, liked the same things, did the same things? All of the
rest of the people in the world are ‘others’ to each of us. Your
assignment is to introduce yourself to me. Tell me about yourself, your
likes, dislikes, and most important, what makes you special—because
each of you is very special with your own talents and goals!”
At first Bill was reluctant to bare his soul. Did he want the teacher
to know that he fixed his own lunch because he liked to cook and
experiment with food and recipes? Would she laugh at him for watching
the TV food channels, hoping to one day compete on them? Would she
scoff at his desire to have his own restaurant and catering business?
He consulted with his mother about his concerns. She urged him to take
the risk. So he decided to share his ambitions.
The teacher was meeting privately with each student as part of her plan
to get to know them better as she addressed the bullying. Bill had
overheard Guy bragging to his gang that in a week he was going to be a
teen-ager. It gave Bill an idea which he asked the teacher about during
his session with her. She gave him her full approval to proceed with
his project.
A few days later, the teacher explained to the students that one of
Bill’s special talents was cooking and baking. “It’s clear that Bill is
a chef in training. There are many outstanding male chefs all around
the world. Maybe in the future you can say that you know Bill and were
there when he gave his first party. He has baked a cake and decorated
it with skateboard designs for Guy’s birthday today. Bill, please bring
in your one-of-a-kind cake.”
Guy was in awe as he looked at the cake and said, “This is the best
cake I’ve ever had!” After class he told Bill, “I was wrong about you.
We could use a chef in our gang. Could you make goodies to share with
us at lunch sometimes?” Bill smiled and nodded “yes.”
Moral: When you bury the hatchet, be sure to forget where it’s buried.
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