A 7-year-old girl named Emmie left her mom in tears after she stood up to a group of mean girls at school with a response so confident and kind.
We see so much hate in schools, workplaces, and even more on social media these days. We all know how it feels when someone throws harsh words at us that crush our spirits.
It shakes us deeply and makes us question our identity. If it affects us that badly as adults, how much worse must it be for young minds still figuring out the world.
We cannot imagine how many kids are going through that kind of pain right now, and we have all heard the tragic stories of what happens when it gets too far.
In this inspiring story, we see a brave little girl who courageously handled a hurtful moment with more grace and confidence than most grown-ups could ever manage.
Emmie had been dealing with a group of girls at school who were being rude and leaving her out. Her mom, Maren Droubay, had been hearing about it for a while.
Then one afternoon, Emmie came home and said, “Mom, I stood up for myself today.” Maren quietly hit record.
What came next honestly gave us chills. When one of the girls told Emmie, “I don’t even like you,” this little girl did not flinch.
She said, “Well, guess what? My family thinks I’m a princess and I’m super kind and nice. And if they think that, that’s who I am, but if you don’t think that, that’s OK because that’s what I think of myself, and that’s who I actually am.”
Maren said she “instantly started crying” because she was just so proud. Those were the exact values she and her husband had been pouring into their daughter since birth. Hearing them come back out of Emmie’s mouth was everything.
When Maren found out she was pregnant with her first daughter, she was worried. She knew how hard the world can be on girls and women. So she and her husband made a decision early on.
They would raise Emmie with courage and kindness. They told her she was a princess. Every single day. And she believed it.
What we speak over our kids matters. What we pour into them at home becomes the foundation they stand on when the world tries to knock them down.
Maren was also careful about how she talked about the other girls. She did not want to call them bullies.
“Sometimes girls are just mean to each other,” she said. “It’s just hard to be a girl.” That kind of grace from a mom whose daughter was being hurt says a lot too.
The family had recently moved from Salt Lake City all the way to Brooklyn, New York. That is a big change for any kid. So knowing Emmie handled something this hard, in a new place, with that much confidence and kindness, made the moment even more powerful for Maren.
We all need a little bit of Emmie’s courage. Because if we are honest, a lot of us as adults still struggle with what other people think of us.
We let someone’s opinion shake what we know to be true about ourselves. But this little girl already has it figured out. Her worth is not up for a vote. And neither is ours. God already settled that a long time ago.
WATCH: 7-Year-Old Girl Shuts Down Mean Girls With a Response Beyond Her Years
