OMG Nikki, I don’t know what to do! My mom picked me up from school, and then my little brother embarrassed me in front of all of my friends when he yelled, “YOU AND YOUR FRIENDS STINK!” The worst part is they actually found out that he’s my brother. I’m SO embarrassed that I NEVER want to back to school again! Help!! ☹️
Hurt, Horrified, And Humiliated
Hi Hurt, Horrified, And Humiliated,
I’m sorry to hear that your little brother embarrassed you! Maybe he’s jealous because he secretly wants to hang out with you and your friends? Or maybe not. It doesn’t really matter WHY he said what he did. He said it. And now you’re worried about what your friends think!
It sounds like you’re not worried what they think of HIM. Because whatever they think of him, you probably think it times 100. No, it sounds more like you’re worried about what they might think of YOU because of what he said. Because he’s YOUR brother.
Here’s the thing, though. Most of your friends probably have siblings of their own. Older or younger, it doesn’t matter. And even if they don’t have siblings, they have parents, grandparents, aunts or uncles who embarrass them. This is, like, the one thing ALL kids our age have in common, no matter how different we are.
So, think about it! When your friend’s sibling (or parent or whatever) does something embarrassing, do you judge her? Or do you judge the embarrassing relative? I’d be really surprised if you judge your friend for their sibling’s or parent’s actions. Odds are you feel kind of sorry for them. Maybe you think, Oh wow, I can TOTALLY relate… But you don’t think, “Wow, Madison is SO LAME because her sister made a face at me.”
My point is, your friends might have been offended by what your brother said. But I’m sure that doesn’t mean they think YOU’RE weird for what he said. I understand you’re worried, but at the same time…it doesn’t really make sense, does it?
When you go back to school—WHEN, not if, because you have to AND you should still hang out with your friends—I’m guessing no one will say anything about it. And if they do? Then you just roll your eyes and tell them how annoying he is. They’ll see that you don’t think the same way he does.
I’m guessing they’ll say, “Yeah, you’ll never believe what my brother/sister/crazy Aunt Mabel did the other day…!”
And the next time something like that happens, try to remember that your brother’s actions only reflect on HIM, not you. (Now, if you do something embarrassing in front of HIS friends, that’s ANOTHER story!)
Hey guys, how do you handle it when a sibling or family member embarrasses you in front of your friends? What advice do you have for Hurt, Horrified, And Humiliated?
