Ep. 19 – Dr. Friendtastic's Friendship League: Jason GriffithDr. Friendtastic’s Friendship League is made up of adults who care about kids and have volunteered to share with you about a friendship rough spot they faced as a kid plus a kind thing a friend did for them. In this episode, Jason Griffith, who was the voice of Sonic the Hedgehog, tells a powerful story about overcoming being bullied. Learn more about Jason at https://www.instagram.com/real_jasongriffith/Scroll down for discussion questions, a transcript, and how to submit your child's question.Like the podcast? Check out my books and webinars at EileenKennedyMoore.com. Subscribe to my NEWSLETTER, DrFriendtastic.substack.com, to get episodes sent to your email plus Q&A posts for parents.SUBMIT A QUESTION TO DR. FRIENDTASTICAdults, please use your smartphone's memo function or an audio app to record your child's question. Hold the phone close to your child's mouth to make sure the recording is clear. Have your child state:1) their FIRST NAME (or another name),2) their AGE, and3) a BRIEF QUESTION or concern about friendship. (Please do not include any friends' names.)Submit the question at DrFriendtastic.com/podcast or email it to DrF@EileenKennedyMoore.com. (Obviously, this is not psychotherapy, and it’s not for emergency situations.)THINK ABOUT IT QUESTIONS to discuss with your childRich was the ringleader in picking on Jason. Why do you think the other kids joined in on the meanness? If you were getting picked on like Jason was, which adults could you go to for help?Why did Rich tell the other kids to stop picking on Jason? What do you think Rich felt or realized that changed his mind?Have you ever stood up for someone who was getting picked on? If it’s not safe for you to speak up directly, in the moment, what are some other ways you could support someone who is getting bullied?What do you think about the fact that the person who was meanest and kindest to Jason when he was a kid was the same person?Redemption means freeing ourselves from a bad situation or bad actions. We can always choose to move forward in kinder ways. Rich made a big change, but all of us can work on being kinder in our daily lives. What is one way you could be kinder?TRANSCRIPTHi, I'm Dr. Eileen Kennedy-Moore, an author and clinical psychologist based in Princeton, NJ. Today on Kids Ask Dr. Friendtastic I have something very special for you:A lot of kids think they're the only one struggling with friendship problems, but really everyone has faced friendship rough spots! Today, I’m introducing Dr. Friendtastic’s Friendship League. The Friendship League is made up of adults who care about kids and who have volunteered to share with you some memories from when they were a kid about a friendship rough spot they faced plus a kind thing a friend did for them. Here's our very first Friendship League episode: Hey, Kids! Hey, Dr. Friendastic! This is Jason Griffith, former voice of Sonic the Hedgehog and Shadow the Hedgehog. So a friendship rough spot I had as a kid would have been about the time I was in 6th grade. I really wanted to be friends with the popular kids–the kids who played sports and were cool. And I was so not cool. I had a face full of zits, big glasses, chubby, brush-cut hair that wasn't even even… So, nobody–with very few exceptions–wanted to be my friend, and I was picked on a lot.  I remember at the end of school, we'd be waiting for the bus, and there was this kid, Rich, who would stand in front of me and just make fun of me, and say horrible things to me, and really hurt my feelings until the bus came. Our bus was always the last one to arrive, so it was a while. And I even remember my dad had some trouble with the law, and it got publicized in the newspaper, and he would make fun of me for that. It was just not a fun time. I knew I could be a great friend, and I would be loyal and supportive and creative friend. I just didn't get that chance. A twist on that, to answer the second