I got caught…
I got caught being a mean girl!
I got caught being a mean girl and the person I was being mean to straight up called me out.
I got caught being a mean girl and getting called out in the moment was one of the best things that ever happened to me.
Here’s the story…
When I was in my first semester of college rodeo, I got caught making fun of one of the girls on the team on HER camera. It was clear that it was my voice. (This was B.S.P. Before smart phones).
Shortly after she watched her video, she marched right up to me, looked me in the eye and called me out. “Were you making fun of me in that video?”
In this moment, I had a choice to make.
1) I could lie, even though we all knew it was me.
2) I could make an excuse and play it off like it wasn’t a big deal.
3) I could own my mean girlness, take responsibility for my actions and fess up.
I went with option three. I owned it. I really did feel terrible and I sincerely apologized to her. Thankfully, she is an amazingly kind person and she forgave me. Since then she’s been one of my best friends for 14 years.
I look back and ask myself, What would have happened if she hadn’t had the guts to bring the problem straight to the source? What would have happened if she chose to talk to everyone else about it first. What if she would have plastered my name all over and gave other people the opportunity to misconstrue the story? What would have happened if she would have posted it on social media for the whole world to comment their opinions on?
I needed to be called out! I needed someone to look me in the eye and show me the damage I’d done with my tongue. God needed me to experience that moment so I could learn just how hurtful, not only that I could be, but that I was.
I am so grateful she saw my humanness and didn’t choose to slander me in every other way before giving me a chance to own my mistake. I’m even more thankful she accepted my apology and moved forward with life after it, giving me another chance!
Currently, we live in a world of hiding. We hide behind the keyboard. We hide behind Snapchat that deletes conversations. We hide behind the comfort zone of our cliques. We hide behind social norms. We hide behind our excuses saying our hurt feelings instead of owning that we hurt someone else’s first.
Rather than just going straight to the source of the problem, we work around everything but it. In our friendships, relationships, working environments. We see it everyday. Scroll through your feed. Walk through the campground at night after a rodeo or a barrel race. There has always been nastiness, but too many are taking it to new levels.
Today, I encourage you to go straight to the source. If you know you’ve been the mean girl or boy, don’t hide from it, own it. Take responsibility for your actions.
If someone has been rude, dishonest, hurtful towards you, go straight to them and ask them about it. Give them a chance to own their mistake, explain, and apologize. Keep others out of it.
Then forgive!
Forgive yourself for being a jerk. Forgive others for being a jerk. We’re all human. Our humanness takes over sometimes. Holding on to those grudges only creates more division. Division is what satan wants, unity is what God calls for us.
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Lacie, again, thank you for being the person who came straight to the source. You taught me a very valuable life lesson that I’ll never forget and will continue to share with those who I catch in a similar position! Most importantly, thank you for forgiving me! I appreciate our friendship so dearly. Happy Birthday!
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