Whetstone's Thomas Brown joins Brandon and Axel for the first of a two-part series on the subject of childhood bullying.

Once a victim of terrible bullying, Thomas emerged as a three-decades filmmaker, educator, national speaker and consultant on a subject he knows all-too-well.

Despite a frightening childhood filled with physical torment and ridicule, Thomas ultimately forgave his tormentors and moved on to a life-long mission, to realistically and creatively address the problem, utilizing his own film creations and a nationally-recognized program that put kids and adults alike, through a powerful and emotional experience.

Thomas sums up his feelings about the subject of childhood bullying like this:

"Despite the numerous life-shattering school-shootings and youth-suicides that were directly attributed to childhood bullying, this epidemic problem that continues to adversely affect the lives of children and adults world-wide, has yet to shed itself of the notion:

Bullying is just a natural part of growing up.

Thomas concludes:

"The darkest part of history certainly tells us something entirely different, giving strength to this chilling reminder:

Those who do not remember the past, are condemned to repeat it.

In part one of this episode of "A Time to Sharpen", Thomas shares just a small portion of a childhood filled with fear and in some instances, outright terror, focusing not-so-much on his own life 'then' but his deep concerns for what is happening in the lives of tormented children now, and the terrible path that bullying can sometimes take.