Underdog - TELUS campaign #EndBullying

U N D E R D O G

To the ones that don't fit in the body they came in,

Or are defined by a name that causes foreheads to wrinkle with judgement,

To the ones who are mocked for having parents that worked hard to put us in school,

To the ones who hide their home-cooked lunches because others disrespect the spices that carry decades of tradition,

To the students that are forced to eat meals alone -

You can sit with us.

To the outside thinkers, to the people that wear 'strange' clothes,

To the ones who grew up incapable of doing something that people find so easy to do and can't wipe off the labels society stamped on them,

The ones who didn't ask to be hurt by someone else's carelessness,

To the ones who are laughed at for seeing the world differently than everyone else -

You can sit with us.

Parents, supervisors, and teachers tell you to stand up

But what if I told you to sit down.

That rising above bullying doesn't mean being loud or putting on a show

To prove you are invincible,

To prove you are worthy,

To prove you are enough and have power,

To rise above first starts with taking responsibility for your thoughts;

It's knowing there is more to life than a high school cafeteria,

It's knowing you are always worthy of love,

It's being alive that makes you rich,

Rising above is remembering who you are,

What you've accomplished,

It's erasing 'Who do you want to be when you grow up' on the dream board

And writing in 'Why can't I be happy with who I already am'.

At this table,

It's accepting you are different

But so is the guy next to you and the girl beside him,

And being okay with that.

At this table,

It's choosing to live in a world meant to stand still

And knowing the right time to dip your hands into the earth's silent oceans

And beat them until waves crash against rocks

So winds are forced to shift and the boats must change course.

Your friends, families and secret admirers will cheer you on

As your energy will move mountains;

Where you've been, has no bearing on where you can still go.

At this table,

Our future is getting brighter,

Our path is getting clearer,

We are getting closer,

Together we are rising above;

The more this Earth turns,

The more wild flowers like us will soak up the sunlight we're given,

And if we continue to strive to be only ourselves, life will quicken our roots,

Our spirits will raise us into the light,

And the ones that can't stand us will watch our bloom inspire the world,

Because our table is growing.

Come sit with us, TELUS, WE Day and Wattpad, and together we can rise above to #EndBullying. 

This work was commissioned by the Telus - WE Day campaign.

Go to the @Telus Wattpad profile and enter your poem in the #EndBullying contest. 

It's your time to make a difference. :)