Writer's Workshop

It's supposed to be Writer's Workshop Wednesday (yes, I KNOW it's already Thursday) but I'm going to play along anyways because I love these things!

The prompt: Tell about a time you hurt somebody that still bothers you today.

That was a toughie for me. Not because there hasn't been a time I have hurt somebody but because it's hard to choose just one. There have been times within the last year that I have foolishly hurt people and regret the role I played in it. But it's so much easier to talk about the past...like the way, way distant past...so that's where I'm heading.

I was 14(ish). All the young women in the ward were singing a special number in sacrament meeting that we had been practicing for weeks on. We all march up the steps to the stand and take our places and begin the song. I was standing next to my best friend, Rachel. Everything is fine for about 10 seconds and then one of the Beehives (a 12-year-old girl) begins to really belt it out. Loud. The problem: she was absolutely tone deaf. It sounded so bad. At first Rachel and I exchange glances and try to conceal our smiles. Then we start pinching eachother's hands in a crazy effort not to laugh. Because to a couple of immature 14-year-olds the whole thing was absolutely hilarious. Finally it becomes all to much and we erupt into a fit of giggles no matter how hard we were trying not to. Thankfully the song eventually ended but that was just the beginning of it for me. After the meeting was over a tall, blonde, outspoken woman stalked Rachel and me out to the hallway where she cornered us and I'll never forget the encounter that followed.

"You girls should be ashamed of yourselves! Everyone in the congregation knew what you were laughing at. I can't believe that you would behave that way. You should know better!"

And we should have. We hurt that poor girl's feelings. A girl who was a little "off" anyways and probably dealt with being made fun of on a regular basis. I went home and wrote about the experience in my journal and to this day regret that I couldn't understand the situation for what it was. She was just another girl like me who was on the stand that day singing a song to show her love and faith in the Lord. Except unlike me, at least her heart was in the right place.