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
