Dear Friend,
I wish you could know how much it stabbed me in the heart when you told me that you sent him a picture. Instead all I asked was, “Why?”
You told me that you felt like the pressure from him had been building into that moment. You told me you didn’t want to disappoint him.
My heart broke. It broke for you, but it also broke for him.
Have you ever heard the sentence, “If you love someone, let them go?” I believe that our generation has a different version of that phrase: “If you love someone, don’t ask for nudes.”
My heart broke because I knew that there is a place in everyone’s heart that is supposed to house respect. It was supposed to have respect for you, your boundaries, and your limits.
Instead of having respect, however, his was filled with lust.
I wanted to talk to him. I wanted to tell him how I felt about what he did to you. I wanted to look him in the eyes and ask him why he would even ask you. I wanted to ask him what made him lose respect for you and your limits and your boundaries?
Instead, I just held you while you cried.
I know you will never send another picture. You told me so yourself. But I also know that you can’t go back and change what happened. So now the only thing you can do is to use your experience to help other people realize how serious these pictures are.
You told me that sending that picture changed your life.
It changed mine too.
Because it isn’t just a picture. It isn’t innocent or harmless. Some people don’t realize how it will impact them. How trust can be broken, relationships and friendships destroyed. Some people can’t cope if the picture gets tossed around from person to person. Not only is it literally illegal but it changes the way that people see you or how you see them.
And, it’s more than “just a picture.”
If you want to talk to someone about an experience with a related situation, fill out the following form to contact author Jordyn Young.
