The message of this story is that bullying can occur because your situation has changed--not because of who you are. Maggie, a happy and popular junior high student, was challenged to hold onto her personal self worth when her father lost his job, their family farm was forced into foreclosure,and they became homeless. The family decided to live in a homemade camper on the back of their pickup truck and drive to Florida to find a better life. Stuck in homelessness, with their homemade camper as their only home, and their personal lives deteriorating, Maggie's mother insisted Maggie go back to school. Based on her poor and unstylish appearance, Maggie was singled out and bullied by an upscale classmate and her entourage who found Maggie's appearance intolerable. But once her father found a job, the situation changed so that Maggie's real value was finally allowed to be seen, and the bullying finally ended.
