I am going to be honest..."If You Really Know Me" was almost shocking.
I, personally, have never really experienced a lot of those things in my school(s) that the kids on the show did, so it was heartbreaking and eye-opening to watch so many people have so many terrible things in their lives, like wanting to commit suicide, being in drug and alcohol violence, experiencing racism, and being told to “Go to Hell” because their sexuality was not “acceptable”.

"If You Really Knew Me" really opened my eyes. Where I am from, we don't have gangs, or the "ghetto", or anything like that. I’m not from that part of town...but I have seen it, and never really taken it in as much as I did watching that. To be honest, I've looked at gangs, people who dress like they’re from the hood and think "Whatever, do that with your life." but there's so much more to them.

Last year, we had a motivational speaker come who was from downtown Houston, not the best area, and was in a gang. He was going to be big...a rapper, having it all. He was good. But then his brother was killed due to drunk driving. His mother passed away. He started doing drugs and dropped out of school. He ended up in jail. He had almost ruined his life...until he figured out that what he was doing wasn't the thing he should be doing with his life. Now, he talks to us, and encourages us to be the best we can be, no matter who or what you are. I hadn't taken that in as much as I did after watching this show.

My parents have always told me there's more than what meets the eye. Do not judge people until you know them. But, there are those moments when you do. You see someone and you say "No, not talking to them because they (insert something here)", and that's where people are wrong.
There's more than what meets the eye, definitely. I've seen parts of the world outside my little world, and I know what it looks like. My dad was in war zones; I know people have it bad out there. I know people in my own country have it bad. I know people in my own city have it bad. But I guess I didn't realize that those people could be my friends. For all I know, some of my friends could have been cutting themselves, or thinking about suicide, or having a bad home life and I would not even know it, because everyone here has the "same life", or so it would seem. We all are raised the same, we all go to the best schools in the state, and then we all go to college and become doctors and lawyers and engineers and astronauts. That is just the way it works here, or so I thought. Everyone seems to hide what is really going on in his or her heads. You never know who is not having that kind of a life, no matter who they are. People can surprise you.


The show was really eye opening.
Everyone isn't living the same life when you're from the same area.
Everyone, kids, parents, teachers, anyone, needs to watch If You Really Knew Me.

MTV Needs to have more shows like this...not Jersey Shore-type things that have no meaning...things that people can relate to.
I hope that every school gets to experience what those kids did with Challenge Day, because I think it could do us all some good.