A Woman Stood Up The Man Who Bullied Her At School With This Incredible Note

[MineralMan]

226. This reminded me of something from my own life.

One of my friends in high school was a girl who got a lot of bullying. She was very nice, and quite pretty, but her mother was a very strict person with a strong religious belief. She dressed her daughter, even in high school, in out-of-style clothing that looked just like women's clothing from the 1940s. We were in school in the early 1960s. She also did her daughter's hair in a style from that period. As a result, this very nice girl was subjected to nearly constant ridicule from a small number of fellow students.

I knew her because she had a beautiful alto voice and was part of a number of musical groups I also sang in. She was not allowed to date or do any after school hours activities, but we were friends. With high school graduation, everyone went their own way, and she went off to some Bible college, so I didn't see her any more.

I returned for my class's 15th reunion (the only one I attended until my 50th). Sitting at a table there with my wife and sister and her husband, we were approached by a beautiful, stylish woman. After a second, I recognized her as my friend and greeted her. She joined us at the table. In the 15 years since I had last seen her, she had shed her out-dated styles and hair and had become the person she wanted to be. The change was drastic and dramatic. I mentioned it to her and she explained that once she left her home town she had transformed herself, switched colleges, and was now working at an advertising agency.

What she said next was fascinating. She told me that I was one of the very few people she remembered in a positive way from those high school days. Then she mentioned that she had been hit on several times at the reunion by now-divorced guys who had been among those who teased and ridiculed her. They didn't recognize her, and just saw an attractive woman attending the reunion alone. She told me that each of those people approached her now and tried to flirt with her. She said that she just told them her name and told them, "No, thanks. You didn't see me in high school, except as someone to ridicule. Now, you find me attractive. I am the same person I was then. No, thanks."

I was not surprised. Anyhow, we had a nice chat, remembered some times singing in the same group, and stuff like that. She wasn't at our 50th reunion, and I found out that she had died a couple of years before. What a shame that she had to go through that, but what a good thing that she had found a way to become who she wanted to be once she left her home town.