When I was a child I wouldn't say boo to a goose. I was the scapegoat for everything that went wrong in our family, taking the blame and thinking I deserved it.
At school I was taunted when I moved from the north of England, because of my strong accent. I don't think that the city, where we moved to and where we now live, was used to "foreigners" at that time, though it is full of them, now! Because of the taunts, I lost my accent very quickly and even now I speak in a very neutral way, which is a great pity. If I tried to speak with a northern accent now, it wouldn't be real ...... I couldn't do it!
Over the years I tended to be passive and would do what others wanted me to do and it has taken me years to get to the stage where I am now.
I will not be pushed around and I don't suffer fools gladly, either. I go into shops and complain if something is not right and firmly ask for a refund or a replacement and stand my ground.
These days my family send me to sort things out as they know I will not be fobbed off.
So I think that in answer to David's question in his Weekend Wanderings asking "What Is The Most Crucial Thing I've Ever Learnt," has to be, that I have learnt not to be a victim any more.
