I went to a Catholic private school from kindergarten to eighth grade and then went to public high school. I can confidently say that I've experienced both worlds.

There are things that I loved about going to a private school and things that I didn't, but one thing is for sure- it's practically another world.

Here are some of the experiences you've probably had if you went to one.

1. Making the sign of the cross after the pledge of allegiance.

“Uhhhh wait a minute…” Hey, the pledge comes right after prayers alright it’s an honest mistake

. At the beginning of every school day, we started with morning prayers and then finished with the pledge of allegiance. It wasn't uncommon to see someone doing the sign of the cross while half awake.

2. Remembering to wash your uniform at 10 pm Sunday night.

This is what your parents look like when you tell one of them, "oh yeah we never washed my uniform..."

One of the only cons of wearing uniforms is that if you forget to wash it (or God forbid, lose it) you're seriously in a jam.

3. Putting real effort into sitting next to your crush during mass.

Middle school moment to the max. When you line up to go to mass you discreetly try and stand behind the person you've had your eyes on. You get to hold hands during the Our Father, why wouldn't you fight to sit next to them?

4. Trying to get away with wearing nail polish/makeup/or any of the many things the school doesn’t allow.

"Oh yeah, they're totally not gonna catch me." *averts eyes from teachers for the entire day*

5. Getting lectured at for trying to do the last point.

Throwback to being forced to take off half an ounce of mascara with nothing but a wet paper towel in the girl's bathroom. You can't blame a girl for trying.

6. Having classmates that feel more like family members.

One thing I will always miss about private school is being in a classroom full of peers that feel like family. Especially in middle school, when some of my classmates and I had been going to school together for upwards of six years, I felt so comfortable in class sharing my ideas and joking around. Who cares if I say something stupid when I know these people so well? If you do something dumb it just makes everyone laugh (and I mean laugh with you, not at you.)

7. Waiting anxiously for the class list to come out.

I don't know how other private schools operate, but my school was small so one grade took up two usually 18-24 person classes. A couple weeks before school started an administrator would send out an email with the list of names of who was in which class. It was SO important. Seriously I would check my parent's email for that thing daily close to when school started. I NEEDED to be in the class with my friends.

8. Thanking God for out of uniform days.

Although I didn't mind wearing a uniform, dress down days were like a big deal since they didn't happen often. You gotta show off your good outfits at some point right?! It was really tragic if you forgot and came in your uniform though.

9. Hearing rosary beads walk down the hallway while you're acting a fool.

"GUYYS SHHHH do you hear that?" *immediately becomes silent and stiffens up*

We had religious sisters at my school (one of which was the principal), and they wore rosary beads so you could always hear them coming. This was a good warning bell for us to straighten up... or else.

10. A write-up/infraction being your worst nightmare.

The funny thing is that I seriously remember having a nightmare that I received an infraction even near the end of my middle school years. I'm not sure what logic is behind why we were so frightened by them anyway. Maybe we just thought it was going to go onto our permanent records which don't exist. I guess you could call us gullible.

11. Going on retreats.

Our eighth-grade retreat was awesome!! We went to a Lifeteen camp called Covecrest which is in Tiger, Georgia, and this is a picture of it. It was so great being in such a beautiful place, worshiping God with my classmate-family. The retreat was such a fun bonding experience for all of us, including a few of our teachers.

In our bunk rooms, there were like 6 of us and one of our teachers as the chaperone. Isn't that kinda funny? Sitting in a sleeping bag on the top bunk while the person on the bottom is usually in the front of the classroom teaching you grammar or math.

12. Hearing someone blurt out a curse word and looking at the teacher like...

If I could turn back the clock and for 5 minutes go back to this time- I would. I want to again know what it is like to hear a student (or better yet A TEACHER) curse and then me be in utter disbelief. I'm having difficulties even imagining that I was once that innocent. But I was, ok, I really was that innocent and my friends were too. I remember back in sixth grade it was a big deal that one of my guy friends heard our teacher say "shit" while dealing with the printer. It was truly unbelievable.

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Going to a Catholic private school for 8 years of my life is something I will always look back on fondly. They were good years, and I developed a solid foundation for my faith during them. I'm glad I can look back and laugh about some of it, and if you went to one I'm sure you can too.