How to Ditch the Cliques

Yesterday I just got back home from an 11 hour flight from Athens, Greece to Frankfurt, Germany then to Atlanta, Georgia. Tomorrow I will write about all the stuff that happened in Italy, then the next day Greece. Anyway, the trip was fun and I learned a lot of interesting things during the past 10 days. But I will tell (actually write) about that topic later. I have never been out of the country, or an airplane before, and been on a trip that long. This trip really opened up my eyes and I feel more well rounded. My mother and I went to Greece and Italy with my school, Georgia Cyber Academy and EF (Education First) tours took care of everything. It was an really awesome trip because we had such an amazing experience and tour guide. Other students and teachers also went on the trip, since all of the kids (and me)  goes to a cyber school (a public school but on the internet) we haven't seen anyone in person, so we actually "met" everyone at the airport. At first I was a little nervous because I did not know any of the students and my roommates who I would be sharing a hotel room for the next 10 days. Thankfully, I got great room mates. Some students went on the trip by themselves and they did not know anyone personally.
I like to study people and their behaviors, so I definitely noticed the characteristics of my classmates. At first everyone was shy and nervous which is reasonable because we did not know anyone. But soon people started meeting others and everyone was friendly. After the 2nd or 3rd day, we all got adjusted to our environment, surroundings, and people. But during this trip I learn how cliques/groups are started because unfortunately, I was in it. Ahem... *sighs* (because this is a hefty explanation). Initially, everyone was nice to each other felt included and important. But when we got used to everyone cliques began to form. In my opinion, cliques are formed behind the scenes and the key ingredients are judgement and gossip. Here's a deeper explanation:

When Person A dislikes or judges Person B's actions or behavior, Person A can talk about how he doesn't like Person B to Person C which causes gossip. Gossip always leads to separation and judgement leads to a wrong perspective of the person's view point. Both ingredients lead to cliques. 

When a person talks bad about someone and judges them, often the person will choose not to be around them and stay with people they like. Orignially, I thought that cliques just happened and they couldn't be controlled but I learned how they are created during this trip. The kids started judging others and talking about them to their friends which caused them to separated. In the beginning our bond was strong but later on in the trip the bond became weaker. I think their is a connection with elementary school and middle school. Everyone is friends or colleagues with each other in elementary but cliques begin to for in middle school. Maybe younger children did not have a full understanding of judgement, but I am going to move on so I can get to the point. Before I said I was apart of the whole mess and I was. At first I communicated to everyone because I accepted everyone, but soon I saw their behaviors in a different light. Suddenly, I did not want to be around them anymore because I judged their actions and behaviors which caused my relationship with them to weaken. Unintentionally, I began to reject the person. Rejection is like a karma. If you show some rejection to a person they will probably try to reject you all together first because they do not want to be hurt. I didn't understand why others where rejecting me but then I realized that I showed some rejection to them first.
Fortunately, my mother and God taught me how to solve this problem. Drum roll please!!! Which is..... To love others the way they are and pray for them instead of judge! One morning I was in a sour mood because I saw something I did not like from a friend. My mom told me that I had to release the anger because it really wasn't worth it. I can't control people's actions and I cannot be moved by their decisions. In fact, Jesus already knew that Judas was going to reject and betray him but he still showed him love in spite of Judas' wrong doings. I believe that if everyone loved the person for who they are and not their actions and prayed for them instead of judge them. Then it will be easier to ditch the cliques and soon more people's self esteem and confidence can be lifted up. Since most people wants to be loved and be cherished, this method is possible because it can benefit everyone. I am extremely thankful that I learned this lesson because I can prevent rejections towards others and my self.

*I challenge you to write down 5 good qualities about a person dislike and try to view them as person God created them to be but not their actions* 


(Look forward to tomorrow and Monday because I will be showing pictures and videos from my trip)

-Gracelyn Lives