Bullying

This subject is a little different than what I usually blog, but I have to talk about bullying. I have recently finished a YA inspirational fiction about bullying called Bullied to Death.

When Chloe drowns herself in the family pond, four lives drown in the aftermath. Now they must learn how to live without her while their faith hangs in the balance. Chloe's parents separate because blaming each other is easier than trying to love through the pain. Her brother seeks revenge. Sophia, Chloe's best friend, has to find a way to get through high school and defend herself against the same group of bullies. It's a battle of faith and grief. When Chloe's journal surfaces, can God's love see them through the truth?

Bullying needs to end. Period. Now, how can we make it stop? I just watched a series of videos showing several children who have committed suicide over bullying. My prayers go out to these families. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gE5yINOn4N4&feature=related

My daughter is also bullied. She and I are close; spending time together and talking every day. Until I started writing this book, I didn't know the extent of it. I soon found out she never confided in me about everything. I asked her to start a journal. This was in March. She started with an entry in January. The bully had kicked her in the stomach! She never told me. Had I not asked her to start this journal, I may never have known.
That's one thing I encourage parents. Have your children write in a journal, especially if you suspect they are being bullied. Luckily, my child allowed me to read her journal so I could place the entries as chapters in my book. But I feel that parents should read their children's journal or diaries. Is it going against privacy? Maybe. However, there are some things parents need to know. Most often, children do not always tell others when they are being bullied.
Why? My daughter says two reasons: she doesn't want to be a tattle-tale, and two, it makes the bullying worse.
In future blogs, I will discuss what I find during my research of this subject. I pray God will work through me to share my findings with you.
Please feel free to comment. I would love to hear what you think. Also, if you have stories to share, I'd love to hear about them too.
If it's not too much to ask, please forward my blog out to others so we can discuss this in a wide range. My hopes for my book is to help others, including parents and bullies, see what bullying can do through the words of their victim. I also pray that my work gives victims out there the knowledge of God and a helping hand. There are options, just suicide shouldn't be one of them.