I feel very strongly about this. We should never need to discredit someone else for the sake of our own self-esteem or confidence. If I have unkind thoughts or words that is my cue to consider my motivations and feelings. Not that I always felt that way. There was a time when I was jealous and insecure and sought to destroy a girl at every turn. Fortunately, the story has a happy ending, and we became best friends. I wish I could lay it all at youth’s door, as I was only 15, but I was old enough to know better. Did I suddenly become more popular and get the praise I had long sought? No, but curiously, the less concerned I grew about what others thought, the more people seemed to naturally see my better qualities.
Rose Fairbanks 