While I had a great experience at my small Catholic school, there are some distinct things that separated my experience from the experience of other kids in public schools

1. Uniforms

For years all we did was complain about them, but once you have to pick your own outfit every morning, you don't know what you'll do without them. Sure they weren't cute or enjoyable but we definitely under appreciated the extra 10 minutes they saved every morning since we didn't have to pick out our outfit.

2. Explaining to people that your teachers were not nuns

Maybe you had one or two teachers that had a religious vocations but very very few if any.

3. You prayed before every class and at the start of the school day

4. School dances were drastically different than public school dances

The Catholic School kids had to actually learn how to dance because grinding was not an option

5. Gossip travels like wildfire

If anything remotely interesting or juicy happens to anyone, the whole school knows by the end of the day. It isn't hard for gossip to travel in a small school.

6. You know everyone and everything about them

Similar to the gossip, everyone knows a decent amount about every person and probably their family too. We can't imagine going to a big school where you don't know your whole class.

7. Yes we go to school with boys

Not every catholic school is unisex

8. Catholic Schools Week was the best

Well pretty much just student appreciation day when the students got cupcakes or something special

9. Kairos was probably the highlight of your senior year

and you probably wish you could've gone sooner

10. And everyone wore their Kairos cross after they went

11. You forget your friends at other schools don't take a religion class

12. Being surprised that some high school boys actually can grow facial hair

It's hard to believe when every boy in your class has to be clean shaven everyday that some boys can actually grow it.

13. Finding "school appropriate" prom dresses

What even are two piece prom dresses? We for sure couldn't have them

14. The stress that came with having a dress down day

Trying to decide the one outfit your classmates would see you in that month

15. All School Masses

Everyone complained but mass also meant shortened classes

16. You had incredibly short lunches in order to squeeze religion class.

By the time you sat down, your 25 minute lunch was over

17. Everyone thought you were a bunch of super rich spoiled kids

That's not necessarily the case. Sure our parking lot had a fair share of BMWs but that was not the case for everyone

18. At the end of the day, you wouldn't trade your school for the world

sure it had its ups and downs but at the end of the day you made some amazing friends, memories, and wouldn't trade it for the world