When you notice someone else is doing something that you think is strange or that you don’t approve of, ask yourself this question: is it hurting anybody else?
If the answer is “no”, then you should probably walk away and mind your own business. It’s not up to you to decide what is best for other people, especially if you haven’t bothered to find out why they have made certain choices.
If you bothered to ask, you might have a different perspective on the entire situation.
Phoebe Kannisto has six sons: a set of five-year-old triplets, a pair of eight-year-old twins, and a ten-year-old. The family lives in Cheektowaga, New York an until recently, all six boys had very long hair.
Hair length and style are an example of something that doesn’t negatively affect anyone else. It’s a personal choice, and we should all respect that. Whether or not you like someone’s hairstyle doesn’t matter, as long as they are happy with it themselves.
How would you like it if someone made fun of your appearance?
Yet, many people don’t seem to understand this very simple concept and have to comment on everything, even the hair of a few young boys.
All six boys were bullied for their long hair during the time they were growing it out. It wasn’t just kids their age doing the bullying, either, the unnecessary and unfair judgments and unkind words often came from adults. And adults should know better!
What all those bullies didn’t realize was that these boys were growing their hair out for a special reason. They lost a family friend to cancer and some of the boys were close in age. They were affected by the death of their friend and wanted to do something to help.
So, all six boys decided to grow out their hair and donate it to the nonprofit organization, Children with Hair Loss. It took months, but eventually, the boys were able to donate 17 feet of hair!
Watch the video below:
Before you make fun of someone or bully them for something you don’t understand, take a minute to think about what you’re doing. If it doesn’t hurt anyone else, then it’s none of your business!
Please like and share if you think that these boys are an inspiration!
The boys’ decision makes the comments about their appearance look particularly misplaced. People saw the long hair but did not know the purpose behind it. The family had connected a personal loss with a practical way of helping other children, and the visible result required patience over many months. The eventual donation gave that period of waiting a meaning the bullies had never considered.
Even without that explanation, the boys should not have needed to defend their hair to strangers. The special reason makes the story moving, but respect should not depend on discovering an admirable justification after the fact. A person does not have to provide a charitable explanation for an appearance that harms no one.
Seventeen feet of donated hair is the memorable outcome, yet the quieter lesson concerns the judgments made along the way. The family knew what they were working toward while others assumed they understood enough from a glance. Their example invites a more considerate response: leave room for a story you have not heard, and do not mistake an unfamiliar choice for a reason to be unkind.