“OMG did you hear about what she did? I heard it was on purpose.”
“No way, seriously? She’s so mean. I can’t believe she has friends…oh wait, here she comes!”

We have all been in situations where we aren’t on best terms with the people around us, and as hard as it for some people to believe, we never will be on the best terms with those people. Eventually we begin to talk about it and what does this lead to? Right back to the original talker, ourselves. This thing called “talking” is what gets us in trouble. To be more specific: This thing called “gossiping” is what gets us in trouble. Gossip hurts everyone, no matter “how much they deserve it.”

“People come into your life as either a lesson or a blessing.” As cheesy or cliché as the quote sounds, it is very true. You can learn something from every single person in your life. One day, you will come across someone who won’t treat you nicely and you’ll want to talk about it with other people. Sometimes you will be so hurt or angry that you don’t even realize what you’re doing…you’re gossiping.

The definition of gossip is unconstrained conversation or reports about other people. There are two key sections to this definition: there is “unconstrained” and “other people.” The “unconstrained” part is what makes us not think of what we are doing, meanwhile the “other people” is what makes people around you pay attention and spread this information. And as soon as this comes back to us, we begin to have regrets.

The results of gossiping include someone striking back at us with the same power, even if we didn’t mean to hurt someone. When we gossip we do not think about the consequences because we believe that talking about someone to other people will give us power. But in reality we are not doing anything better than what started this evil cycle: the fact that someone hurt us.

Marie Curie said “Once something is said out loud, assume everyone knows.” Although this quote may exaggerate, it can make anyone think more about their words. Before saying something, think about the trouble that it might cost you. High school is stressful enough: why make more obstacles for yourself? It’s better to just remain silent than hurt other people, no matter what they did to you.

There are other options besides talking to others. You can directly talk that person or just silently move away.

So next time you have a conversation with another person, think about how many times you talk about another person and when you do, think about how that person would feel if they were standing right there with you. Everyone gossips, everyone gets hurt one way or another, but everyone needs to learn that gossip hurts and it hurts you the most.