Kristen Chapman

We had the pleasure of talking to Kristen Chapman about being Lady of the month! Kristen is currently working on finishing her degree in marketing at VCU. She is also a makeup consultant at Sephora. We admire her deeply for being the strong women she is and for not giving up on her goals. Here is her story, we hope it will inspire you to stay positive and to follow your dreams!

Kristen Chapman 

” My first experience with a bully was with none other than my own cousin. Because she was older than me and we were always around each other I immediately thought I could look up to her. She was always so mean to me growing up and I could never really understand why. I remember dreading going over to my grandmother’s house just because I knew she would be over there and I never could really tell what kind of mood she would be in.

As a little girl I was always very quiet, shy, and rarely ever stood up for myself. I guess she always just took advantage of that and always bossed me around, teased me, and called me names.For the longest time I thought I was ugly just because of all the nasty things she used to say to me. I remember begging my mom not to take me back over to her house.

At school was not much better. I went to a school that was filled with ‘mean girls’. Since I was bullied at such a young age by my cousin, when I started school I had no self esteem. I was still quiet and extremely shy. On top of that I also had very curly and frizzy hair and wore glasses. Yes I think you know where I’m going with this. So naturally I was the target. I hated school, the girls used to tease me so bad I would come home crying everyday. One day a girl even put gum in my hair. Playing sick became a regular routine for me.

As bad as all that sounds, the truth is that all of those horrible things are only temporary. It is not about what others have done to you it is about what you choose to take from that situation. Are you going to let that define who you are? For me the answer to that  question was a no brainer.

Today I am a confident, and goal oriented woman. I never let anyone or anything get in the way of my dreams. Because of all the bullying I endured growing up I gained an immense amount of strength. I do not believe that makes me better or worse than anyone else, however it has molded me into the person I am proud of today. For that reason I embrace my past and do not look back with any remorse.

Most of the time (not all) it’s the bully’s victim that actually succeeds and really makes a name for themselves. For example, last month when I was at a fast food drive through window. I was surprised to see one of the ‘mean girls’ that I have not seen in years working the window and not looking so good I might add. I could not help but to feel just a little bit of justice was served in that situation. The point is that whether the outcome is good or bad, in the end we always get exactly what we deserve. So do NOT worry about the nasty and mean things others say about you or to you. Just remember to keep your goals and dreams in mind and never let anyone take them away from you and most of all SMILE sweetie you are beautiful”.