According to statistics, 17 percent of children suffer bullying. Although it usually occurs with greater incidence between the ages of 11 and 13, it is increasingly common to find cases of bullying in early Primary courses, and even in the Infant stage.
And this is what happened to Hugo, who with only three years suffered the rejection and physical violence of a classmate. His mother, Valle, decided to tell his story in an emotional story called "Hugo and the magic recipe", which is not only a precious tribute to his little brave, but an excellent tool to help other families who, unfortunately, are going through the same situation.
We have talked with this mother about the hard experience, and the values she has wanted to convey through the pages of the book.
Hugo's bullying began at age three
According to UNESCO figures, two out of 10 schoolchildren in the world suffer bullying, a sad reality that affects 246 million children across the planet.
Bullying is usually associated with teenage age; not surprisingly, according to recent studies between 11 and 13 years is when there is a higher incidence. But, unfortunately, it is becoming increasingly common to find cases of bullying among young children.
In Babies and more According to a recent study, bullying is brewing in the infant stage, although it begins to develop in primary"The harassment of Hugo It happened when I was only three years old, in first year of Infant. The episode lasted from three to five years, and it was very hard. So much so that I don't want it even for my worst enemy. ", remember his mother, Valle.
"During that period we spent horrible months and years, with moments in which it seemed that everything had happened, and others in which we returned to relapse. It was not until Hugo turned five when he began to handle the situation, and learn to say! Enough!".
Hugo was sad and didn't want to play
At three years Hugo was a happy and smiling child, but with the passage of time his character began to change. At school he was suffering harassment by a classmate, who intimidated him and turned him aside.
Hugo was very sad, but at this age it is difficult to express certain feelings in words, so it was not easy for his parents to understand what was happening to him.
"One day we began to realize that Hugo was behaving strangely. He was seen sad, dull, decayed, not wanting to do anything... But he didn't tell us what was happening to him. At first we thought it was a virus, or a disease that was incubating, but over the days we saw that it did not improve. "
"So we decided to talk with your teacher, in case she had detected something in the school environment that was making her feel bad. And indeed, he told us that there is a child in class who was chinchaba and bothered him, but we never thought it could be something so serious".
Finally, Hugo confessed what was happening
With the information the teacher had given them, Hugo's parents decided to be attentive to their son's behavior and see if it improved with the passing of days. And it is that initially, Valle thought that it was a quarrel of small children.
But far from improving, Hugo was sinking more and more: "I was getting sadder, more dull and there were even days when I didn't even want to go to the park," says Valle."One day he got up in the morning and confessed to us, crying, that there was a child in his class that bothered him, insulted him, forbade other children to play with him and that in addition he punched him in the stomach. That day I finally understood everything that was happening to him ".
In Babies and more Victims of bullying with four years: bullying at preschool A difficult situation that required everyone's collaboration
The first thing Hugo's parents did when they learned what was happening was to talk to the teacher again, who was a very important support for him in those terrible moments.
Quickly, the school activated the bullying protocol and everyone turned to help Hugo. The child's family was also a key pillar, because thanks to the education in values that they gave to their son and the way of managing what was happening, the child managed to get ahead.
"We teach Hugo to defend himself without harming himself, making himself respected and worthy but without using violence. Finally, with five years he learned to say enough!"
In Babies and more, seven keys to teach your child to defend themselves without using violenceValle also asked for help from the parents of the bully child, and although initially they were collaborators, soon they ignored the situation. This reminds us, once again, how important it is that we all row in the same direction in the face of such situations, protecting the victims and holding back the stalking child.
"Hugo and the magic recipe", the emotional story that Valle decided to write about his experience
When the situation was more or less channeled, Valle felt the need to capture what had happened in a book, and that's how the story of "Hugo and the magic recipe" was born. Its author explains how she focused the book and the journey she had to go to see it published:
"I love children's literature and I like to turn to stories to help my children in various situations. So, when I saw that the problem was controlled and almost overcome, I decided to write a book to help other kids who were going through the same that we had lived ".
"One day, when I was traveling, the inspiration came to me and I wrote the first draft of" Hugo and the magic recipe. "The project was taking shape day after day, and when it was finished I felt that I should publish it, because I was sure that our history could help a lot ".
Valle's magic recipe to stop bullying
Faced with the terrible situation that his son was living, Valle decided to create a magic recipe that will help your little one to feel well emotionally, and arm himself with courage to learn to say "enough".
That magic recipe is what gave the story a title, and it is simply wonderful:
"Kilos of patience, three sacks of love, 100 grams of communication at school, five kilos of confidence and 250 grams to say Enough! And the final touch of a little more love"
In Babies and more Lou, Pixar's great short film about bullying that invites us to reflectDespite the initial difficulties, the story ended up seeing the light
The story was ready. Despite the hard experience, Valle had managed to narrate it with great delicacy and sensitivity, permeating in each page love in abundance, courage and tenderness. With the help of the illustrator Mireia Barberá Aranda, "Hugo and the magic recipe" took shape.
But despite all the work done, the story could not see the light immediately, and Valle still had to face many challenges to get it edited:
"At first no editorial wanted to host the project. But I didn't give up: I wanted the book to see the light. So I began to investigate how I could self-publish it, and step by step I was creating the whole book, the repository, the ISBN, the printing, the distribution and the sale "
"I decided to do a crowfounding and encourage people to be part of that adventure. For 40 days I moved heaven and earth to publicize the project, and I finally got the money I needed to print the first edition, consisting of 1,000 copies "
The story has been a great success
Valle and Hugo reading the story A little over a year ago the story saw the light and the 1,000 copies released are almost sold out. A titanic achievement, if we consider that Valle did it all alone, driven by the love for her son and the need to help other families.
"Hugo and the magic recipe" has arrived in Mexico, Colombia, England, Germany, France, Italy and even Japan. But the great satisfaction for this mother is knowing that her story is helping many parents:
"I know the story has helped many children. His parents write to tell me their experiences, and how Hugo's story has helped them. Professionals such as teachers, psychologists, and even police officers who give talks against bullying have also contacted me ".
"After all this time, I feel very proud to have been able to help my son and many other children who, unfortunately, have had to experience episodes of bullying."Acknowledgments Valle Pérez Pastor
Hugo and The Magic Recipe
Today in Amazon for € 14.95
