“Come to my office, Jack.”

“Sir, I didn’t do anything” Jack sits down at Principal Morris’s desk next to Officer Griffin and one of the schools social workers who’s named Mrs. Yazzie.

Principal Morris hands Jack a letter. “Look at the bottom of the letter and tell me who this letter is written by.”

Jack looks at the letter. “It was written by Bobby Makwa; the short kid who always wears the funny Jewish hat that he calls Kippa and goes on my bus. But what does this have to do with me?”

“Last night, Mrs. Makwa; Bobby’s mom, found Bobby dead because he overdosed on pills with this letter laying next to him. He says it’s because you have been making fun of him every day.” Principal Morris answered.

“This isn’t correct Principal Morris. He knows I’m just hazing because he doesn’t care. He knows I don’t mean it” Jack exclaimed.

“Son, if you meant it or not doesn’t matter because words hurt. Even if may not seem like it hurts somebody. And this is a serious problem we have here.” Officer Griffin informs.

“So you’re saying that even though I was joking around and Bobby never looked hurt by it, it did hurt Bobby’s feelings enough him to commit suicide.” Jack asked.

“That’s exactly it Jack. Words can hurt people more than anything else. Even physical contact. Because words can cause people’s self esteem to plummet and they’ll believe all the lies they hear are true. They’ll believe lies like ‘they’re ugly’ and ‘they’re worthless’. Even when you say this such stuff to somebody to goof around and even if they know you’re joking, it will hurt them more than you think.” Mrs. Yazzie explains.

Jack looks down at the ground silently. “I’ve never realized how much words hurt people. I guess that since nobody has ever spoken back to me I just never knew what it is like to be spoken to like that.”

Principal Morris walks over to the globe on the corner of his desk and turns it to Germany. “Have you, by any chance, ever heard of Adolf Hitler, Jack?” Principal Morris raises an eye to Jack.

“I think everybody has, Sir. Especially in a Jewish community like ours.” Jack answered him. “He’s the man who caused the Holocaust killing 11 million people; 6 million being Jewish since it mainly aimed towards the Jewish population in Germany at the time.” He informs.

Mrs. Yazzie looks up at Principal Morris and questions him. “what exactly does Hitler have to do with Jack causing Bobby’s suicide?”

Principal Morris holds up a finger towards Mrs. Yazzie for her to be quiet. “And you know how he physically bullied millions of people because they would be tortured with whippings and beatings but you could actually see the pain that everybody feels because it leaves scars. But you saw millions survive; just barely, because they knew they could beat what was happening to them. Jews in the camp would influence each other through words that they can survive even though the Nazis were starving them.But do you know why they were freed?”

Jack thinks for a second. “Was it because Germany lost World War Two and America gave Hitler two choices: kill himself or somebody would kill him so he killed himself and so that ended the Nazis and the Holocaust?”



Principal Morris shakes his head. “No, Jack. America had nothing to do with this. Hitler killed himself because Russians were bullying him. They weren’t hurting him physically. But they did it with words. Don’t you think that if someone as powerful as Adolf Hitler would commit suicide because of bullies who verbally bully him? He never showed that he couldn’t take it. Even though Hitler deserved what he got, you still never knew how much the bullying hurt him because he appeared in front of everybody as if he’s perfectly fine. Bobby did the same as Hitler. With physical bullying you can see the damage done but not with verbal bullying. Everybody is able to see what Hitler has done to the Jews but you could never see what the Russians done to Hitler until the day he died. All the people around here aren’t as powerful as Hitler was. Hitler wasn’t able to stand up to the Russians. Why would Bobby? Why would anybody be able to stand up to the bullying you have done?


“I don’t know Sir. I never realized.” Jacks replied.


“Well kid. Now don’t you see how much words hurt?”

Jack shamefully shakes his head yes in response to the question. “Yes, Sir, I do now. I never realized how much words affect people.”

“And Jack” Mrs. Yazzi added. “Do you know how Hitler got everybody in Germany to follow him?”

Jack lifts his head towards Mrs. Yazzi and responds with a single word. “Words?”

Mrs. Yazzi nods her head. “Yes Jack. That’s exactly how he did it. Not through being born into royalty. Not by being so important to society. He gained it through words. He brainwashed society. Exactly like how you did it to Bobby; except of course Bobby is one person and you’re brainwashed his brain differently because instead of making him feel he’s most superior like Hitler mind washed Germans to believe, you have brain washed him negatively to kill himself.”

Officer Griffin stands up and stands right behind Jack. “Jack, I don’t want any problems now. So I need you to stand up and put your hands behind your back. We need to take you down to the station for further interviewing.”

Jack jump up and remarks. “You’ll never catch me!” Jack runs to the door and swings it open, only to find two more police officers standing in front of the door, blocking Jack’s way. Jack feels a hand grab his shoulders.

“Jack, by now you should know that I know you too well since you do come to my office a lot.” says Principal Morris. “I had a feeling you might do something stupid like run off so I got more officers to block the doorway so that wasn’t possible.”

At this moment Jack realizes that his life will change for the worse. “But Sir…”

“No buts Jack! You had your chance. Now it’s time for a punishment. Mrs. Yazzie, please call Jack’s parents and tell them what’s happening. And you know what to do officers.” orders Principal Morris.

“I’m sorry” Jack murmurs “I never knew words hurt more than contact.”

“And that is what you will be able to think long and hard about for the next few years.” replies Officer Griffin.

“It’ll be what I’ll be thinking about for the rest of my life is more like it” Jack corrected “Not just for the next few years.”