Everyone believed he was somehow inferior to them because of the way he smelled or because of the tattered clothes in which he dressed, and so they judged him without ever truly knowing him. I remember trying to advise him not to fire back at their cunning remarks, though my words had little impact. I recall feeling like he was my friend, though sometimes my thoughts betrayed me. I’m still unsure as to why I didn’t join in with my classmates or why I even talked with Jacobi, but all I know is that I did to some degree.
I learned the following year, after spending the summer deciding to stand up for him, that I would never see Jacobi again. I learned it from a former classmate when he gleefully asked if I’d heard what happened to Jacobi. Turns out that Jacobi had been taken to live with his grandparents. …show more content…
Challenging a belief doesn’t have to be a verbal proclamation, it can represented by our actions. I challenged their beliefs by, looking past what he seemed like on the outside and trying to be his friend. I know what it feels like to take the punches others offer, and I’ve seen the anguish it causes others. Though I was neither the villain nor the hero in this story, I’m determined to never be a mere supporting character in the future. I’ve decided to become the hero I should have been all those years ago while I had the