You are special. Whoever you are, wherever you are, whatever you've gone through - you have worth. Don't forget it.
Everybody is different. We all come from certain backgrounds; have our limitations, and our difficulties. Either way, we all have purpose here on Earth and deserve to be treated humanely. None of us like to feel secluded or left out, and we should try as hard as we can to be kind. It isn't too much to ask for, and can really make a difference. It would surprise you what someone deals with or how much they have on their plate, but often we don't take the time to consider this. I know I am guilty of not having as much empathy as I could, and sometimes I regret the things I do or say because of it.
Last year in my school district, one of the high schools closed and all the students got transferred to one of five different high schools. Not only did these students get split from the majority of their friends, but the school was in a poverty stricken area and they didn't have the same backgrounds many people at my school. Most of the students from this school were very poor, and didn't have the nicest clothes or hygiene. Because of this, instead of being welcomed into our school, many of the new students were ridiculed or judged.
The thing I regret the most about this is that I never said anything positive or welcomed them the way I should have. I was never rude to them or spoke negatively about them behind the backs, but I certainly didn't go out of my way to make them feel included.
Those students probably felt so uncomfortable entering a brand new school where almost everybody already knew each other. I know that if I was one of them, I would have hated being torn from a place where I was comfortable and put in a different atmosphere. I wish so badly that everyone could have been welcoming and nice to the new students, but they weren't, and it's not like I did anything to help.
There was a lot of negativity towards them from the start, and things didn't get much better as the months rolled by. There were so many rude things said about the new kids, and it got so bad that some of the bullies got suspended. The students at my school didn't clean up their act, though. To this day, there are tons of outcasts and people who have been neglected by our student body. The outcasts aren't necessarily kids from the other school, either. People are simply just hostile towards others who aren't the same as them.
This same kind of treatment is everywhere in the world. Kids are constantly being left out of groups or not made welcome because of laziness or inconsideration. Take the extra effort and make somebody feel welcome.
Say, "Hi," to the person who is all alone. Be a friend to the friendless. Be an ear for the unheard. Be a companion for the left out. These are people too, and they deserve to be treated like one.
They are special. Whoever they are, wherever they are, whatever they've gone through - they have worth. Don't forget it.
