It Doesn't Matter What You Say...

I was an awkward child. I had "lazy eye" and wore an eye patch until the second grade. I couldn't tie my shoes until second grade and I couldn't ride a bike without training wheels until fifth grade. Because of my vision problems, my depth perception was off. I walked funny, my handwriting was messy, and I had to go to physical and occupational therapy. I was diagnosed with sensory integration disorder, which still affects me today.

That's me on the right (the younger sister).
Needless to say, I was teased quite a bit. Even in high school, a lot of people didn't treat me very nicely. I guess they remembered me as a child in grade school and couldn't let that go. And I was still a bit awkward in high school too.

This morning, on the way to school, my daughter kept insisting that kids at school look at her and think mean things about her. I told her that people are usually not thinking what you believe them to be thinking. Even if they are, it doesn't matter. She said that sometimes people do say mean things to her. We all know that kids are mean. They sometimes say things just to see if they can make you mad. I reminded her of this. I also reminded her of the one thing that I ultimately learned through all the teasing and people looking at me funny. IT DOESN'T MATTER WHAT THEY SAY OR THINK ABOUT YOU! What really matters is what you think about you. So I reminded her. If someone tells you that you are stupid, or ugly, or anything else that you are not, you just tell them the truth. Tell them, "It doesn't matter what you say because I know that I am smart and pretty and you are wrong." Nothing shuts someone up faster than knowing that you have confidence in yourself. Tell it like it is and move on. Forget the haters. They aren't worth your time!