This novel story is offered as an early intervention resource for parents and teachers to guide young children in matters related to bullying. By personifying the trees therein, the author illustrates a basic tactic used by bullies in attempting to intimidate and dominate their victims, i.e., criticizing their physical size and appearance. By ignoring the insults and ridicule from the Big Trees, The Little Evergreen Tree earns the respect and admiration of a young girl and is selected over all the selfish and overbearing bully trees to be her special Christmas Tree.
Forms of bullying have existed throughout history wherever people gather—in homes, schools, places of work, worship, and play. Due to the growing prevalence of social media, bullying by means of digital devices—cyberbullying—has become the newest platform for the abusers. People from all age groups are potential targets, but none are as vulnerable as young children. They usually experience their first encounter with a bully on a school bus, the playground, or inside the schoolhouse.
Typically, bullies attempt to dominate and control their victims by intimidating them physically, mentally, and emotionally. They belittle, demean, harass, mock, and even use physical force to strike fear in order to satisfy their apparent need to show superiority. Professionals attribute the cause of this aggression to a number of personality disorders including feelings of inferiority. The mental health deficiencies of bullies logically must be remedied at their source; however, the devastating long-term emotional damage to the victims is the priority to address. Numerous studies such as that done at Yale University and reporting from ABC News indicate that thousands of youth suicides and hundreds-of-thousands of daily school absences are directly related to bullying. (http://www.bullyingstatistics.org/)
