What would you do if you found out that your 8-year-old son was being bullied? Many of us would be ready to take up arms and defend our family but sometimes, it is beneficial to step back and assess the situation. That is what Aubrey Fontenot of Houston, Texas did when he found out that his eight-year-old son, Jordan was being bullied. He wanted to get mad at first but then he decided to think about it.
Aubrey thought about the situation long and hard and he recognized that jumping into it with both feet was not going to be a solution but it would only escalate the problem. He decided that he would get to the bottom of what was really taking place and do more than find out who was bullying his son, he would find out why he was bullying his son. In the end, he decided to get to know Tamarion, his son’s bully and find out why he was acting out against Jordan. He knew that there had to be something he could do to ease the tension for everyone involved.
Aubrey talked to Tamarion’s parents to get their permission so he could take him out for a drive in the afternoon. They drove around Houston and he did his best to become friends with the boy. He then started asking him why he was bullying his son and was surprised, as well is saddened when the reason came out.
Tamarion told Aubrey that he was lashing out at kids, including Jordan because he was also being bullied. As it turns out, other kids were picking on Tamarion because he was wearing old and dirty clothes. When he called the mother, he found out that it was true and that they were not only having financial struggles, they were homeless.
Aubrey took a lot of time with Tamarion on that ride in the afternoon. He took him out and purchased him some new clothes and shoes and wanted him to feel some self-confidence. He told him: “Put your shoulders back, dog. Act like you’ve got some pride,” as he was trying on a new shirt.
When they got back in the car, they were all singing together with a song on the radio and Tamarion was smiling in the passenger seat.
After they got back to Aubrey’s home they all sat down and the two boys were encouraged to settle things once and for all. Admittedly, there were some awkward moments at first but in the end, the boys had a good conversation and were laughing by the time it was over. They now are good friends and regularly will meet together at Aubrey’s tattoo parlor so they can play video games.
As it turns out, Aubrey was only getting started when it came to helping Tamarion and his family. He began a GoFundMe account and raise $25,000 so they could get back on their feet.
“We have no clue what these children are going through these days because a lot of us just don’t care,” Aubrey wrote on the GoFundMe. “And this is not an uncommon story for a lot of people … so I spent a lot of my day yesterday shopping and teaching this young man about self-respect. Integrity. Morals. Confidence. And other things that consist of going from a troubled youth to a great man.”
We could all learn a lesson from what Aubrey did that day. One of the lessons is the fact that anger is not something that we should let lead us into action. We should always take a moment to calm down, clear our head and have a goal in mind that will benefit everyone involved. In addition, you can never judge a book by its cover and we often don’t know the entire story.
You can watch more about the first day that Aubrey had with Tamarion in this video:
spent some time with my sons school bully yesterday .. just to dig a little deeper on”why?” .. come to find out he was being bullied for not having clean clothes n clean shoes.. I asked “why?” .. just to find out that his family is currently homeless??♥️?✊?I had to do Something pic.twitter.com/IY29lgChqY
— TattooArtistAubrey (@illuminaubrey_) October 17, 2018