Take A Step Back

So there is a girl and she is always happy. Like every time you see her, you stop and think to yourself…how can someone be that happy ALL of the time??? But, it is with this girl’s happiness, that it calls to question that maybe she is just putting on a facade and that she isn’t actually that happy -- that really she has a certain reputation to uphold this particular type of happiness. This girl just couldn’t bear to have others look down on her, simply because she is hurting. Instead, she sits with 1,000 other thoughts in her head, with her main focus of how others are going to portray her.

Now take the girl who always seems to have it together -- whether that be in her life, or by the way her hair and makeup are done, or even by the appearance of her clothes. This girl seems intimidating, because how could someone be so perfectALL the time? This type of girl pushes many away, but have you ever thought to stop and talk to her? Because maybe she will be the sweetest person that you will ever meet. Just maybe she has something going on in her life that has made her the person she is, but you would never know because you don’t take the time to get to know her.

Then you see that frat boy at every party, he always has a new girl on his arm and a drink in his hand. It’s the same thing every weekend, and you promise yourself that you will never be with someone like him because of his weekend routine. Weekends aside though, have you ever once considered talking to him during the week? That doing this could lead you to find out why he acts the way he does every weekend, to perhaps instead be his saving grace and not just the next random girl he meets?

Then you have the funny guy. You know, the one that has a joke in every situation, and the best jokes he tells are always about himself. Everyone laughs along and no one could ever take him seriously enough whether it be in school or in a relationship. This guy’s the one that is hurting inside, because the only way that he knows how to get through to people is by telling those jokes that mock his life. Have you ever thought that his jokes are just a cry for help, because he actually does not know how to express his feelings in any other way?

Next you have the party girl. Every weekend you wait to hear a new rumor about her, and even though you don’t know her personally, you and your friends begin to make bets on which fraternity she's going to end up at tonight. You know that you have no right to do this, but the whole campus does, so why hold back? In reality, a sense of guilt should arise because there is a reason why this girl cannot commit. There is someone or something that has made her who she is, and instead your judgments are based on what you have heard, rather than what may actually be true.

Now look, it’s the girl who doesn’t say much in class or is the one at parties that is kind of just there. You know, another face in the crowd. You can tell she is nice, but she would never get on tables to sing and dance to every song in fear of being labeled “weird” or that she doesn’t “fit in.” She is the one who is hurting because no one is coming up to her and asking her to dance or telling her how pretty she is, and instead is the girl always watching others.

I’m sure you have been in touch with at least one of these people, and be honest with yourself that you too have judged them. Not because you actually know them, but because of what they put out to the public and the image you see them to be. Have you ever stopped to think of the things they may be going through? Whether that be facing the challenge of divorced parents, alcoholism, abuse, a family illness, or even an illness within themselves -- Everyone has something that is constantly weighing on their shoulders. Or maybe it is the opposite and you are one of these people. Wouldn’t you want someone to be there for you? So please, take a step back and try to remember that, because maybe, just maybe, you could be the change in that person’s life, simply by letting them in.