This ever happened to you?

I've been accused of many things in my life, but it usually seems to go a little like this;

When I was 14 I remember catching the school bus one morning, as I did every morning. To see the guys and go play football for an hour before school started. It was a fun routine, come rain or shine that's what happened. This one day it was different however. Upon arriving I see one of my closest friends at the time waiting at the school bus stop. Saying hi, things should have been normal, like any other day. He however says "I'm not getting the bus with you today man", and when I ask why he says "You know what you've done."

Puzzled & stunned the bus to school was quiet, while my head was spinning trying to figure out what he could mean. Now, nobody is perfect, especially not me but given half a chance to explain myself I'm sure it could have been worked out.

Instead I get to school and not only is this guy not talking to me, a couple aren't. It's a quiet and weird day, but there is work to be done and it soon passes. Lunch time rolls around and a few of the guys who until earlier were friends throw a few petty insults & again confusion reigns. Then it's time for an IT lesson & this best friend sits around insulting me & my family.

I'd had enough and question why, to anyone and everyone. The guy himself answers "you know why". Mutual friends are unsure & can see that the insults are out of line. When the next day rolls around and this guy attempts to start a physical fight with me... they stop him. We end up in front of our form teacher a wise RE teacher type who I'd always respected. He makes it pretty clear that true friends are a rare thing & to let a little gossip get in the way of that is wrong. He asks are we "Willing to forgive and forget", to which I say yes provided the abuse stops.

In life we don't get that kind of mediation often. It later turns out that the guy who had spent all this energy trying to tear me down had been lied to & was going through a lot in his personal life. He has since apologised and we actually got on well for quite a while. In effect I was barring the brunt of his issues with the world. An easy target, and scapegoat for everything that was wrong in his life.

History has a way of repeating itself.

Without a chance to explain yourself, its easy to become the bad guy. Especially when dealing with a highly strung bitter individual. We all piss each other off on a regular basis, but how we react to that is what determines friendships. We can either hold a grudge, tell everyone we know & attempt to get revenge. Or it can be worked out. Of course the second option often means being humble and not saving face. Especially when you back yourself into a corner of abusing and demonising the other person for a long time.

It is certainly possible to convince yourself that the root cause of all your problems is the other guy. Yet the only person that can change events is you. The only person who is responsible for your actions is you. The only way to improve your life is to focus on doing that. Not someone elses.

The reason I mention this is because history has indeed repeated itself. Once again I find myself in a position where people are lying to me, others & behind my back because of something that isn't true. It has more to do with a bitter man taking out his frustration, than it does any legitimate complaint. I sit here no saint, but with a clear conscience, a legally audited & unedited paper trail being accused of theft, cowardice & preventing a man from seeing his son.

That would take me from being a flawed good person, to a complete asshole if it were true.

The sad fact is none of it is. It's all based on truth but twisted. The truth always comes out in the end, but frankly I'm sick of waiting. I will not stoop to someone's level if they want to spread lies about me... but 9 months on this is getting pathetic. My patience is almost gone. I moved on a long time ago to focus on the positives in life. If someone else keeps creating trouble they will get exposed.

Can we prove my innocence? Yes we can.