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00:00Hi everyone, my name is Hope. Please like and subscribe to MSA.
00:03Also, we've just dropped some exclusive MSA merch. We're talking stylish bottles
00:07and notebooks that are total must-haves. Click the link in the description and see for yourself.
00:12That winter, when I was in fifth grade, the world turned all white with snow. Our classroom was
00:17cozy. But one day, the principal brought in a new girl named Maya. She seemed shy and wore old
00:22clothes. Our teacher, Miss Albert, asked us to welcome her, but most of us stayed quiet.
00:26Maya sat next to me, smiled, but I moved away. My best friends were Kendra and Sophie. We
00:31whispered secrets and giggled together. Maya tried to join us once with her toys, but we said no.
00:36As days passed, we whispered and laughed about Maya's old clothes and strange toys. We didn't
00:41want to play with her. As spring arrived, Maya wore a pretty dress, but it looked like someone
00:46else's. We called her Never New and laughed again. One day, she jumped rope alone, not looking at us.
00:52This time, she didn't ask us if we wanted to play with her. She jumped and jumped and jumped
00:56until we went back inside. Then one day, Maya didn't come to school. In class that morning,
01:00we talked about kindness. Miss Albert placed a big bowl on her desk and filled it with water.
01:05We all gathered around and watched her drop a small stone into it. Tiny waves spread out from
01:10the stone. This is what kindness is like. Every little act we do sends ripples into the world.
01:15Then, Miss Albert let each of us drop a stone in while sharing our kind deeds. Joseph had helped
01:20his grandmother. Kendra changed her baby brother's diaper. And even Andrew, the bully, had done
01:24something nice by carrying the teacher's books upstairs. I stood there, holding Miss Albert's
01:29rock, but I couldn't think of anything to share. I passed the stone on. Maya didn't come to school
01:33the next day or the day after that. Every morning, I walked to school slowly, hoping today would be
01:38the day Maya returned and smiled at me. I promised myself this would be the day I smiled back. Each
01:43kindness, Mrs. Albert had said, makes the whole world a little bit better. But Maya never came
01:48back to school. Miss Albert told us she had to move away. I walked home alone, thinking of the
01:53smiles I never shared, the kindness I never gave. I threw stones into the pond, watching the ripples.
01:58It was like the chances of being kind to Maya were gone forever. That day, as I walked home alone
02:04from school, I noticed a boy standing on the corner, looking lost and confused. Hey, are you
02:09okay? I think I'm lost. I can't find my way home. I thought about what Miss Albert had taught us
02:14about kindness, so I decided to help. You know what? You can come with me to my house, and we'll
02:19figure it out from there. Thank you so much. I really appreciate it. He followed me, and as we
02:24walked, we started chatting. I'm Hope, by the way. I'm Jake. Nice to meet you, Hope. He looked poor,
02:29and I thought my wealthy family would be thrilled to help someone in need. Well, not exactly. Jake
02:34and I entered the house while my parents were in the middle of an argument. They stopped immediately
02:38when they saw us. Hope, who is this? So, remember when I said I wanted to start being kind? Well,
02:43I found this boy who seemed lost, and I thought we could help him find his way home. Are you out of
02:48your mind? What if he's a serial killer or someone dangerous? He's twelve, Mom, and since you're
02:53overreacting, I'll take him to my room. Come on, Jake. Let's go. I took his hand and led him upstairs
02:58to my bedroom. Mom was such a narcissist. Even though I was young, I could see right through her.
03:03Like this one time when I was six, I was excited for Take Your Child to Work Day. I thought Mom
03:07would show me off at her big office, but nope. She was too busy shining like a star with her work
03:12friends. I tried to keep up with her, but she didn't even look at me. It was like I was invisible.
03:17Then at lunch, while I was alone munching on a cheese sandwich, I overheard her. Her boss said
03:22she was great at her job, and she told him kids would just get in my way. Ouch, that stung. I was
03:27sitting right there, and she acted like I didn't exist. It hit me hard. To Mom, her job was everything,
03:33and me? I just didn't fit into her perfect picture. And from that day on, I didn't look at her the
03:38same way. If she wasn't going to act like my mom, I wasn't going to treat her like one. But in my
03:42bedroom, Jake had a point. Not to be rude, but aren't you being a bit mean to your mom even though
03:48you're trying to be kinder? Well, zip it, or I'll beat you in the next game. Now pass me the
03:52PlayStation controller. Game on. And just like that, Jake and I hit it off. He was new in town and didn't
03:57have much. That's why he was lost that day. Mom didn't like us hanging out, but I didn't let that
04:02bother me. Life was more fun with Jake, and I felt like I was really becoming nicer. A few weeks later,
04:08I asked Dad if Jake could join my private school. Dad always called me his little princess and would
04:12do anything for me. So he said yes. Well, my best friends Kendra and Sophie hadn't changed one bit.
04:18They were still pretty mean. I kept Jake a secret from them for the last few months. Jake and I
04:23agreed to act like strangers at school until I figured things out and felt brave enough to be
04:27his friend openly. The day Jake started at school, Kendra and Sophie surprised me. Look at that hottie
04:32over there. He looks poor, but God, I'd pay him to be my boyfriend. Yeah, let's pay him together. We can
04:38share him. So when Maya joined us last year, we didn't want to hang out with her because she didn't
04:43have much money. But now you're all excited about a guy just because he's good looking? Oh my God,
04:48why are you so obsessed with this Maya girl? Listen, Sophie, let's hire some private investigator
04:53to find this Maya for our friend, and she can just shut up about it. Ha, you're hilarious. But seriously,
04:58just leave Jake out of your games. Wait, how do you know his name? I overheard a teacher say it,
05:03but really, just leave him be. You know, Hope, since you're so insistent, now I really want to
05:08talk to him. Let's go, Sophie. Great, just what I needed. They went to him and said, Hey there, Jake,
05:13you're new here, right? Yeah, we thought you looked interesting. Want to hang out with us? Jake seemed
05:17to be taken aback, but agreed to chat with them. For the next few days, Kendra and Sophie became
05:22interested in Jake. They wanted him to be their friend, but they had a different plan in mind.
05:26They offered him money to run errands and do things for them. I tried to warn Jake that he was worth
05:31more than being used like that, but he didn't listen. He said, If you want me to stop helping
05:35them, you'll have to tell them that we're friends. I didn't know what to say to that. I wasn't ready
05:39to ruin my image by having a poor friend, especially because Kendra and Sophie wouldn't
05:43stop laughing at me. Yeah, that's what I thought. With those words, Jake distanced himself from me
05:48and grew closer to Kendra and Sophie. They started giving him more money, and he became somewhat
05:53distant. I missed my friend. Then one day, I saw Jake holding their coats and acting like a servant.
05:58I'd had enough. I approached him and dragged him aside. Why are you acting like this? Don't you have
06:03any dignity? You want money? Fine, I'll give you money. Just stop hanging out with them. Well, I
06:08don't mind helping the prettiest and most popular girls in school. Everyone now respects me and
06:12thinks I'm cool. And also, I don't know why, but you act like you're better than them. Well, I am.
06:18You'd rather see them treating me like this than standing up for your friend because you're too
06:22ashamed to have someone like me as a friend. How does that make you better than them? At least
06:26they're nice to their parents, while you're rude to your mom and take advantage of your sweet dad.
06:30You never show him any love. Tears welled up in my eyes, but I couldn't speak, so I just stormed off.
06:36To make things worse, that night, my mom came to my room and said, Hey, Hope, I wanted to let you know
06:41that I've decided to divorce your dad. I've packed my things, and I'm leaving in the morning. I came
06:45to ask if you wanted to come and live with me, although I already know what you'll say. Yeah,
06:50since you already know, please leave and close the door behind you. Mom left, and I buried my
06:55head in the pillow, letting out a frustrated scream, but I refused to let my tears fall. I took
07:00a deep breath and decided I was gonna take matters into my own hands. Tomorrow, I was gonna teach all
07:05these jerks a lesson. The moment I saw Jake the next morning, I said, I'm gonna ask my dad to stop
07:10paying for your school if you don't stop hanging out with Kendra and Sophie. How about that? Yeah,
07:14cool. I'll ask Kendra and Sophie to help. They'd love to. Now, please go away. I have some things
07:19to do. Yeah, like licking Kendra's shoes, for example. Suddenly, Jake looked at me with angry
07:23eyes and a stern expression. He held my shoulders and pushed me back slightly. Listen, Hope, you
07:28need to understand that you're acting like a bully, even if you don't see it. Threatening
07:32your friend to do things that only benefit you is selfish and wrong. I appreciate everything you've
07:37done for me, but for now, please don't talk to me. Whenever you see me, just look the other way. I
07:41hope you have a good life, Hope. And with that, he walked away. I stood there in shock, then rushed
07:46to the bathroom to let out my feelings. When I got there, I found Kendra and Sophie laughing
07:51and chatting. In a moment of frustration, I said, listen, you two, you need to stop treating Jake
07:55like he's here to do your commands. Whoa, calm down, girl. We don't treat him like that at all.
08:00He's just a nice guy who offers to help. But you pay him. Yeah, so what? If you have a friend who
08:06has less money than you and could use some help, why not? Oh, come on. We all know you're not
08:10exactly the nicest people. Yeah, we're not denying that, but at least we're not ashamed to be seen
08:15with a less fortunate friend in public, unlike you. How did you even know that Jake was my friend?
08:21Well, it's pretty obvious that you care about Jake. We even think you have a crush on him.
08:25Yeah, just be nice to the person you like. I know it can be hard for you, but look at us.
08:30We can do it. If being nice to a friend means treating them like a servant, then I'll pass on
08:35that kind of advice from people like you. With that, I left the bathroom. Weeks passed, and I
08:40stopped talking to Jake, Kendra, Sophie, and my mom. Although, mom hadn't stopped messaging me
08:44and inviting me to her house, I ignored her. One day, I woke up super sick and couldn't go to school
08:50for four days. No one asked about me or missed me. I felt very sad and vulnerable. I didn't know what
08:56to do, but I knew I had to talk to someone, and I knew exactly who that someone would be. I went to
09:00Miss Albert's house. She looked surprised to see me. I told her everything. I don't get it. I wanted
09:06to be kind. I helped a person in need, but they chose to be with someone mean, and when I tried
09:10to warn them, they told me to buzz off. And now the mean people are the ones who are giving me
09:14advice to be a kind person. How exactly did that happen? Honey, you helped a person in need, and it's
09:19a good thing, but you want to help them on your own terms only, and this isn't how kindness works.
09:24Sometimes you have to go out of your way to help others. True. You basically implied that I was
09:29ashamed of Jake, and now he chose to be with some mean girls. Remember that there's goodness in
09:34everyone, even if you think they aren't nice. We're human beings. We have goodness and evilness, and
09:39the best of us are the ones who can control their evilness when it's most called for. I hugged Miss
09:44Albert tightly and left. The next morning, I entered the classroom and excused my teacher to say
09:49something. I just want to say I'm sorry to Jake. He's a good guy, and I'm honored to be his friend.
09:54The whole class fell silent, surprised by my confession. Jake smiled warmly at me, and I could
09:59see the relief in his eyes. Your mom's been texting me and asking me about you. She doesn't know we
10:04weren't talking, obviously. Want to go to her place after school? I'd love to go with you. I smiled and
10:08nodded my head.