BULLIES

                                                                  bullies

     

The Bullies
 
Lisa and her parents had just moved into the neighborhood two weeks before, and Lisa had enrolled as a freshman at Arcadia High School. She had already been involved in two fights with a gang of bullies, and her parents had decided it would help if Lisa joined a martial arts school to learn confidence and self-defense. She was scheduled to take her first class on Tuesday afternoon after school.
 
When Tuesday came, Lisa put her gym clothes into the bag she had brought from home and walked out the front of the school. As she did so, she saw three girls standing by the front door of the school pointing at her. When she walked by, they stared right at her.
 
When the light turned green, she quickly walked across the street and down the other side to avoid any trouble with them. The last thing Lisa wanted was to meet her new instructor after having been beaten up. As she reached the corner, Lisa looked over her shoulder and saw the three girls had crossed the street and they were following her. What should she do? She didn't know her way around the new neighborhood very well yet. Where could she run?
 
After she turned the corner Lisa began to run. She ran faster and faster until she was nearly out of breath. Then she darted down an alley to find a place to stop and rest for a moment. The alley twisted and turned, and she soon realized she was lost. If she didn't find her way back to the street, she would miss her class. Lisa began to panic.
 
She began to backtrack down the alley. When she finally got back to the street she ran right into the three girls who had been chasing her. She turned to run down the alley again, but she slipped and fell, scraping her hands and knees on the cement. She felt one of the girls grab her by the shoulders. She thought she was in big trouble.
 
"Are you OK?" The three girls pulled her to her feet.
 
"Leave me alone," she cried, holding her arms in front of her face. "Don't hit me!"
 
"We are not going to hurt you," said one of them. "We heard you were joining the martial arts school and we were looking for you because we go there Tuesday afternoons as well. We wanted you to come with us, so when you started running we ran to catch up to you."
 
"The martial arts school is really cool," said another. "By the way, I am Megan and this is Kelsey and Kimiko."
 
"I thought you were part of the gang that beats up new kids in the school. That is why I ran so hard."
 
"We know all about those bullies. They are always trying to find smaller kids they can frighten. We used to be afraid of them until we began to take classes at the school. Martial arts helped all of us to be more confident," said Kimiko.
 
"When I saw you following me, I thought you were going to beat me up," said Lisa.
 
"Yes, I used to feel like that too," said Kelsey. "Every time someone gave me a strange look, I thought they were coming after me. I told my mother and she got really upset and said I would have to go to a private school across town to be safe from the gangs. After I started martial arts classes, I discovered that most of my fear was inside myself. I learned that I could always take a deep breath, calm myself down, and walk away. After a while, I began to be more comfortable and confident at school."
 
"Come on, we'd better get a move on. We don't want to be late!"
 
The four girls, now friends, ran down the street like the wind and made it to the martial arts school just in time for class.
 
 
Questions for Kids:
       How do you think Lisa felt when she was running with her new friends to the martial arts school?
       What did Lisa learn about where fear comes from?
       Can you think of a time when you were frightened?
       What did it feel like?
       Did someone come to help you?
       What have you learned about being afraid?
       How can you remember to take a deep breath, control your fear, and walk away with confidence?
 
Questions for Older Students & Adults:
       What could Lisa have done when she was first afraid?
       Why did Lisa run away?
       Have you ever run away when you thought someone was "coming after" you?
       How can you tell the difference between fear and danger?
       Have you ever discovered you were afraid because you did not understand a situation?
       What should you do if you find yourself becoming frightened?