We teach them that a little teasing really just means that a boy has a crush on you. We don't reprimand their actions and words in a constructive way. Nearly all of my classes have discussed this in intricate detail. We are not aware of the words that come out of our mouths. We are so neutralized by our hyperbole and understatement that we don't really know what we mean.
Hate is an unbelievably strong word .
And we hear it much too often. For now, we will talk of nonviolence and love and peace, and a month from now, a great deal of us will have forgotten the forlorn dreams we so passionately sought. Instead of continuing to reiterate these ideas of camaraderie between people, we let our guard slip a bit again. As soon as that happens, it's too late. All the things we taught our children for that one month did not profoundly affect their lives.