The far-reaching effects of being bullied during school years are still evident in the lives of those who I know had, unfortunately, experienced this toxic behaviour.
I wrote this poem decades ago. It is based on a true story which took place before policies around bullying in schools were implemented. It is based on a friend’s experience. He was 60 years old when he told me, with vivid clarity, of the continuous bullying that he endured as a young boy. He was beaten on the way to school and at school. He dreaded walking to school in fear the bullies would beat him up. He often hid under a bridge and would deliberately miss catching the school bus. Then he would walk the distance to school arriving late to avoid meeting the bullies along the way. He was a gentle-natured happy person.
Some people can heal from these past traumas, but other gentle people struggle to heal from this trauma. With the start of a new school year, let’s look out for our children to keep them safe and happy during their school years. Let’s stop bullying in schools. Beverley Joy
Listen HERE – Poem – Bullied at School
School is out and home he trudged
Head held low, feeling glum
Beaten and hurt, battered and bruised
Evidence that he had been bullied at school.
He couldn’t understand why his classmates hurt him
He screamed out for help, but nobody heard him
He couldn’t figure out what did he do
To cause his classmates to hate him so?
He mulled it over in his childhood mind
“Did the bully misread the look on my face
Did I say something wrong to make him so mad?”
Too kind and small in physique, to fight back.
As he walked through the door and into the kitchen
His mother looked up from what she was doing
“Your shirt is torn, you naughty boy
You’ve been fighting at school with the other boys.”
“Why can’t you behave and do the right thing
You’re such hard work for me, go to your room.”
“But mum,” he cried, “It wasn’t my fault”
I was bullied on my way to school.”
Why did his mother not understand
Dry his tears, hold his hand?
Soothing himself, the pain remains
Etched in his memory to this very day.
Decades later, he wonders why
He still feels battered and bruised by life
Bullied around by circumstance
Forever running and frightened.
He married a woman, who gently loved
Together they strived to build a life
She wanted so much to heal his pain
She empathized with what he had to say.
His mother had suffered her own ill health
His parents divorced and his father’s death
His pain didn’t heal, etched too deep
Life didn’t give him any relief.
We need to protect our precious children
And create a safe and nurturing space
For them to enjoy their young school years
And as adults, recall happy memories.
Beverley Joy © 2010 Simply Story Poetry. All Rights Reserved.
You can listen to all my poems on several podcast platforms HERE
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