Maybe you just tagged them as the outsider, and ignored them.
Or maybe you never realized that they were there. Either
way, some people are just dying to be heard.
I was an outsider when I was younger. I would try to fit in, I really
would try, but you can't fit in a group unless someone accepts you.
Thankfully as I've gotten older, I've become more outgoing and
am no longer an outsider like I was before. But because of experiencing
first hand the feeling of being excluded, I strive wherever I am to
include and engage the outsiders. You might think that this is too hard,
too embarrassing. But it's worth it. It really is.
Not that long ago, thought it seems like forever, in middle school there was
this girl that hung by herself. I noticed that week after week she was quiet
and didn't engage with many people. So I decided to be the person to step
out of my comfort zone and talk to her. She was friendly and every week
I would ask if she would sit with me at church. I introduced her to my
friends, and soon she became friends with them. Now, she is a part of the
group, you couldn't imagine our group without her. And that was all because
of stepping out of my comfort zone.
So, today's challenge is this: Find someone, be it at your school, your church,
or whatever, someone who sits by themselves, or doesn't talk to many if
any people and just introduce yourself then go from there. Most outsidersare shy, so you'll have to keep engaging them whenever you see them.
And maybe because of doing that, you could make a true friend.
