... There is so much pressure into being popular but is it really worth it? Losing trustworthy friends who honestly respect you, to gain fake friends who respect you publicly but stab you in the back in private. In my view I would rather have few dependable friends for a lifetime, than many bogus friends for a short time. Jealousy is right behind popularity. Girls are usually jealous if someone else has a better wardrobe, grades, and especially a better boyfriend. Boyfriends fit in the category of territory also. Girls are very protective of their men. Any girl that tries to steal another's man is more likely to be the victim of nasty rumors and hate jokes. Now that we know why some girls are aggressive we need to learn how to deal with it and prevent hardships. The parent's response to their child that is being victimized is the most important role to play. Simmons writes that these girls remember the refuge of home and family as one thing that helped them survive their ordeal (p. 232). While she is comfortable in the environment of the home, ask questions about what to do to help better the situation. There are endless ways to solving the problems of bullying, but the best way is to cater to the needs of the one who is traumatized by it. In my experience I have had my share of ridicule and have given the same. Every school I went to I was the new girl because my father was military and we moved around quite frequently. During my elementary and middle school years I remember having the same group of friends. Up until the seventh grade everything was fine and I don't remember being in any fights. Then there was a new girl at school whose name was Andrea Dollar who changed everything. My friend Amy and I approached her one day asking her all sorts of questions to befriend her and she took it as prying and gave us a snooty remark instead of answering our questions respectively. From that day forward we wanted to make life for Andrea unpleasant. We couldn't understand why she was so mean to us when we were being friendly to her. At recess we would follow her around and make fun of her and whomever she was hanging out with. ...
