Isaac Newton once said, “We build too many walls and not enough bridges.” Had someone presented this quote to my young, tween, self, my life might have been very different. The saying “quality over quantity” was one that governed my younger years, voluntarily at certain times, and at others, not so much. While quality is of importance, using this concept as an excuse for not putting yourself out there almost caused me a social life of relative isolation. While the amount of friends you have should not be a competition, there should not be a limitation or social boundary for how many friends one should have; this is a lesson I almost learned too late. Preschool. Finger painting and snack break are the most stressful times of our lives. I learn
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This is the demon that they call “Leah.” It isn’t enough for her to steal my best friend, now she has to go kicking me out of the “cousin club?” Who does she think she is? Why can’t I be a cousin? Of course, none of these thoughts makes it past my lips. I can think of no comeback and eventually admit defeat. Then I spend the longest 30 minutes of my childhood wandering through a whirl of primary colors, swings and slides. The next day, Hope’s back. I can never stay mad at her, mostly because she’s my only friend, and partly because I hate being mad, it takes too much work. However I am allowed to envy her great social …show more content…
High school? That’s a year away!
A few days later, she asks again.
Again my answer is no. We have discussed they have a swim team, but one that co-ops with Mount Horeb. There seems to be no reason for me to switch. Verona only offers more courses, more students, and a bigger and better version of Mount Horeb, essentially. I was not leaving Hope and Alayna. High school was going to be hard enough, even with them by my side. I couldn’t imagine starting over completely without Hope and Alayna to guide me.
But eventually, I was drawn by the allure of the new friends I would surely make. Getting new students was always a big event at school, you got to be popular until it was decided which clique you really belonged in. But I thought that, even if it wasn’t real popularity, even if it was fleeting, I was going to have more than two friends my entire life.
So finally I decided to sign the open-enrollment form, with the promise that I could switch back at semester if I really hated it, from my mother. Summer was a sunny, chlorine-y blur, and finally High School Swim arrived. I enthusiastically dove into the team and whole experience in general, knowing that if I wanted to have friends going into high school, this was make-it-or-break-it time. It was surprisingly easy. I could talk without being glared at or ignored, people were nice, they didn’t bite, and cliques didn’t exist in my little, August
This is the demon that they call “Leah.” It isn’t enough for her to steal my best friend, now she has to go kicking me out of the “cousin club?” Who does she think she is? Why can’t I be a cousin? Of course, none of these thoughts makes it past my lips. I can think of no comeback and eventually admit defeat. Then I spend the longest 30 minutes of my childhood wandering through a whirl of primary colors, swings and slides. The next day, Hope’s back. I can never stay mad at her, mostly because she’s my only friend, and partly because I hate being mad, it takes too much work. However I am allowed to envy her great social …show more content…
High school? That’s a year away!
A few days later, she asks again.
Again my answer is no. We have discussed they have a swim team, but one that co-ops with Mount Horeb. There seems to be no reason for me to switch. Verona only offers more courses, more students, and a bigger and better version of Mount Horeb, essentially. I was not leaving Hope and Alayna. High school was going to be hard enough, even with them by my side. I couldn’t imagine starting over completely without Hope and Alayna to guide me.
But eventually, I was drawn by the allure of the new friends I would surely make. Getting new students was always a big event at school, you got to be popular until it was decided which clique you really belonged in. But I thought that, even if it wasn’t real popularity, even if it was fleeting, I was going to have more than two friends my entire life.
So finally I decided to sign the open-enrollment form, with the promise that I could switch back at semester if I really hated it, from my mother. Summer was a sunny, chlorine-y blur, and finally High School Swim arrived. I enthusiastically dove into the team and whole experience in general, knowing that if I wanted to have friends going into high school, this was make-it-or-break-it time. It was surprisingly easy. I could talk without being glared at or ignored, people were nice, they didn’t bite, and cliques didn’t exist in my little, August