Well, the number of adults I know who have "grown up" are very few. I think I could count them on one hand. By and large, from my limited experience, most people don't become more mature, just...more experienced. Different things.


So, why does being an asshole make someone less of a person then those who he hurt? Why is that necessarily true?

Also, OneMoreTimeAround's post - I do wonder if you are expecting too much from adults and not enough from children.
A child, after all, is the root of an adult. How can we expect so much from an adult when we do not expect so much from a child.

Some may answer, ah, but we expect a lot from our children. I'd ask of you, how many of your children knew how to read by age three? Knew some algebra by five? Had read many important English poems and literature by the age of six, and had already been working on a second language by the same age?

Children are faster learners than adults and can understand and deal with difficult and painful social and emotional problems nearly like adults. We accuse them of being "just children," when they are much more than that; they are much more than we will ever be.

I was the poor kid in a pretty wealthy school. Kids in Izod shirts, monogrammed sweaters and Adidas shoes took one look at me in my homemade clothes and hand-me-down discount shoes and nicknamed me Cinderella within minutes. Sure those kids were cruel, but I got more out of my education there without all the distraction of having all those friends.

As I heard the saying..you bully those boys with the glasses and the books, they might be your boss when you got to work.

Bullies have a tunnel vision. They follow that lead, but really they won't accomplish a lot , they just live in their little life with no windows.

Also, the one being bullied creates a special kind of person. You will fight harder, you will be more informed and you will have more empathy. It just comes from the life experience of being a target for a while.

I have always taught my children to treat everyone with respect and kindness. Everyone, including those with disabilities, that they didn't necessarily like, strangers, you name it. I can honestly say that my children have never talked about anyone like that. Of course, there are those that treated them wrong, and they would voice their opinion to me.

You are right - and that is why I added "with the help of grace"; because for some, it can seem like an insurmountable task that they neither believe they can or desire to do.

grace |grās|
noun
2 (in Christian belief) the free and unmerited favor of God, as manifested in the salvation of sinners and the bestowal of blessings.
• a divinely given talent or blessing : the graces of the Holy Spirit.

PHRASES
there but for the grace of God ( go I) used to acknowledge one's good fortune in avoiding another's mistake or misfortune.

Thesaurus
grace
noun
4 he lived there by grace of the king favor, goodwill, generosity, kindness, indulgence; formal benefaction.

It is good to see that we are not alone, but just one in a crowd. The company of others in the same opinion makes the task at hand easy to accomplish. Unfortunately, one can never change the ways of another. They must do that by themselves!