The world today is very hard and judgmental‭. ‬And you may find it hard to be yourself when everyone is constantly watching your every move‭, ‬expecting you to be perfect‭. ‬

It’s like one day you embarrass yourself‭, ‬and the next day everyone is giving you a nickname‭. ‬In life‭, ‬people judge you based on how you dress‭, ‬think and who you hang out with‭. ‬

And I don’t think it’s fair‭, ‬why should someone call you a‭ ‬‘nerd’‭ ‬or‭ ‬‘geek’‭ ‬because you study a lot‭, ‬wear glasses and wear‭ ‬‘boring’‭ ‬clothes‭? ‬Why should someone be called‭ ‬‘slay queen’‭ ‬because she’s pretty and super popular‭? ‬It’s like that’s the person they expect you to be‭. ‬

And sometimes‭, ‬there are people in your life that try to make you feel small‭, ‬who make you feel ashamed of who you are‭, ‬who make‭ ‬the most popular word in your vocabulary‭ ‬‘loser’‭.‬

But when you find someone who makes it all a blur and allows you to be‭ ‬‘youtiful’‭ (‬yourself in every way‭), ‬that person is a friend‭. ‬No one or nothing should make you feel small or ashamed of who you are‭. ‬There‭ ‬might be something in your life that makes you feel calm‭, ‬maybe music or something else you love‭, ‬go for it‭, ‬just sit down and‭ ‬listen to some music and all the bad thoughts will slip away‭. ‬Always remember that the best person to be is you‭. ‬Because if they‭ ‬don’t see anything worth loving in you‭, ‬that’s their loss‭. ‬In other words‭, ‬be‭ ‬‘youtiful’‭. ‬

Karabo is an 11-year-old Grade 9‭ ‬student at Nu-Vision High School‭. ‬