" High School Musical" heavily influenced my childhood - and my life. Let's be real, what kid didn't want to be in "High School Musical?"

It inspired my musical desires. I was always singing and dancing throughout my entire childhood, but the movies helped me really embrace my desires. It made me want to be just like the big kids and sing my heart out on a high school stage when I got older.

Those movies helped me embrace my inner self. Who doesn't remember the cafeteria scene where Zeke admits he bakes, and everyone else announces their secrets too? After seeing those people embrace their inner selves, it made me want to embrace everything I didn't like about myself, too. I was always that awkward tall girl and never knew how to accept it until those movies came out on Disney Channel.

My friends and I would always run around at recess, and pretend we were the cast of "High School Musical." We would sing their songs, we memorized their dances and we would put on concerts for our fellow classmates with tickets and everything. In the summer, we would always have "High School Musical" themed birthday parties, sleepovers and pool parties. We would stay up late blaring the music while going for midnight swims. (Well, it might've been like 10 p.m., but we were little and that was late).

I had "High School Musical" pajamas, folders and other clothes, and I dressed up like them for Halloween. I was creepily obsessed.

I went to the the concert with my best friend Claire, and we pretty much died when Corbin Bleu yelled up to us from stage, "I love you too!" - you know, after we proclaimed our love for him at the top of our lungs during dead silence in the middle of the concert. I had a life-size poster of Zac Efron from the second movie, and I literally still had it until two years ago when I gave it to a friend as a funny birthday present.

My friends and I took all sorts of pictures where we tried to recreate the jumps from the famous cover of the first movie. And even though they all turned out awful, we were definitely cool because we nailed every pose. I knew every fact about the movie, like how they painted the grass green when they filmed the movie because it was winter time and they had no other choice.

One of the most important lessons I learned from those movies was that "we're all in this together." That lesson brought my friends and I so much closer, because we felt invincible with that line in our head.

I knew that while I watched those movies, I was Gabriella and I would eventually find my Troy when I least expected it. I felt like I would have that love story of how I randomly met the best guy I could ever ask for at some public place I never wanted to be. My dreams came true this year, and I went back to my giddy childish hopes and dreams and thanked Kenny Ortega (the director) for placing those thoughts in my mind.

Who else would believe in something as silly as that forever and have it actually happen?

Lol, just me. But now I have my boy, and he is the Troy to my Gabriella. But that's another story for another time.

I guess all I'm trying to say is that "High School Musical" influenced me in so many ways, and I adore my childhood due to it. The only unrealistic thing that had me bummed about the movie was that there weren't random musical breakouts in high school. But that taught me that I need to put the musical scene in every part of my life, and that is still a challenge I live up to today.

But in general, the movie was amazing and I love it. Coolest thing since sliced bread.

Yeah.

Go watch it.