'X'

On Monday in my Educational Foundations class the topic of the day was bullying. But instead of just discussing how bullying impacts students, we watched a documentary about a boy who was bullied and tormented all through middle school and high school for being gay, his experiences, and how he successfully sued the school for failing to protect him. It was incredibly powerful and emotional to watch. After it ended, our class of 40 was absolutely silent for a few moments. Then our professor put up a collage of teenagers' pictures on the board, telling us that although some students have a happy ending to their story, others see no way out and commit suicide.

This led to the discussion of what causes someone so young to take their own life. We had to do an exercise where we wrote down the top five things in life that are most important to us. Then our professor told us to imagine that something tragic had happened, so now we had to cross out one...which do you choose? We kept going through this process until it got down to only having one item on the list left. It may sound like a simple task, but in the moment with all the emotions it was incredibly intense. Trying to comprehend what I would do with my life if I ONLY had my family...I crossed out my education, my home, my friends, David...just family left. And then we were forced to cross out the last one...it was so hard putting an 'X' through 'My Family.' I was completely emotionally drained.

We connected the activity to what happens to students who feel like they're losing control of everything in life and like they have nothing important left to live for...how they end up deciding that suicide is the best option.

It was not a fun class at all. But it was completely necessary and incredibly moving. I think, and hope, that when I'm a teacher (and even now as a student) I'll be able to recognize bullying and reach out to those involved, be a friend and provide a reason to stay alive.