Roxy Hammond

Last week you saw me at my angriest. There are few things in this world that get me madder than rape. But don’t get me wrong, I’m still angry, and I still wish all the rapists out there would go to hell.

However, as with everything in my life, there are lessons that came along with this experience. Mostly that for every awful, crappy person out there, there are three more kind-hearted ones willing to help out.

I wanted to do something to make my friend feel as beautiful as she truly is, so I started pitching the idea of gathering money to buy a gift certificate to a spa. Not only did I get positive feedback, but some of our friends started writing me checks right then, no questions asked.

Sure, some of these people have good jobs and can afford to drop $20 for an arguably good cause, but most of them are just poor college kids like you and me. Poor college kids willing to spare $10 to help a friend feel better.

I also bought a card for everyone to sign and give a few words of encouragement if they wanted. This proved to be a very effective tool in measuring exactly how kind people can be. There was no simple “Feel better!” written on the card, but instead, immaculate paragraphs about how beautiful my friend is and how she should never let any stupid jerks make her feel otherwise. They were truly nice and thoughtful things to say to a person trying to piece her life back together.

Some of our friends would actually well up in tears while signing the card, because they felt so much sympathy for the crap my friend has had to go through. Some of these people didn’t even have a direct connection to her. They just had compassion for another person and were willing to contribute what they could to help her out.

All of them helped me realize that in all of my anger and bitterness, there are some people out there that validate the human race. While certain people may spend their pathetic lives tearing others down, there are more people out there that are willing to spend their time and efforts to reach out to those is distress, with no other payback than helping a friend – or in some cases, a complete stranger.

To me, that’s the lesson we should learn from this ordeal. While we watch the police department blame their incompetence on everyone else, and while we watch these rapists do as they please because of this, we have to remember that not everything in life is fair. But as long as there are people willing to reach out and catch those who are falling, we don’t ever have to worry about hitting rock bottom.

I know I have no room to talk. I wasn’t the one raped. I can just hope more than anything that all of the support and love gathered through everyone helps my friend realize that she shouldn’t let these useless men drag her down. They are a waste of oxygen on this planet, and they don’t have the right to make anyone else feel anything less than wonderful.

I can hope that maybe this makes us all realize that even little actions in our lives can mean the world in someone else’s. And that’s truly a power we have over the destruction of the rapists.

#1.882518:1072751925.jpg:Hammond, Roxy.jpg:Roxy Hammond, Sarcastic Cynicisms: