Alyssa H., Kettering Fairmont High School
Actions speak louder than words
When I was younger I had a hard time making friends and still do, so the ones that I made were very important to me. One day a friend of mine told me that today probably wouldn''t be a good day since she forgot to do something she always did and it always affected her. I wasn''t sure what to think so I continued to work on my homework but during the last class of the day I saw her in the corner crying, then I remembered what she told me that morning. I wasn''t sure what to do, thoughts ran through my head like “do I ask she''s ok” or “ask if she needs help”? I looked around to see if anyone else saw her but they didn''t, no one spared her a single glance so I thought to myself what would I want if I was in her shoes? So I walked over to her trying not to be noticed too much and sat next to her, I didn''t say anything. I just sat there when the bell rang. She got up and left. There were no words exchanged and I started thinking I shouldn''t have done that. I should have just left her alone.
What really motivated me was seeing her and thinking about what I would want. There were times that I wanted others to come up to me and ask what''s wrong but other times I just wanted people to notice me and I didn’t want her to feel like I ignored her. To be honest I was terrified before, during, and after, I didn''t know if what I was doing was intrusive, unnecessary, or annoying in any way. The next day when she came to me and said that she was grateful and wasn''t mad at me for it, I was glad, I was glad I wasn''t bothering her, glad I wasn''t overstepping, and perhaps happiest that she didn''t hate me.
When I reflected on what I had done I realized that I had been overthinking everything. I was so concerned about what she was thinking that I had forgotten the purpose I originally had when I went to sit with her. It wasn''t to question her or be rude, it was to make sure she knows she''s been seen and tell her she''s not alone, it was to make sure she knows that she''s not alone and that she can talk to me about anything big or small. That day I realized that actions really do speak louder than words even if it may not seem like it at first.
