Many people who probably click this saw South Fort Myers High on the news for one scandal or another. Brawls. Teachers leaving. Blown out of proportion sex scandals. They hear the whispers of kids running wild with needles, or that the teachers are too lax. But no news actually knows what goes on in our school. No people outside seem to really understand. We the past and present students do. And this is how it really is.
Freshman year you go to your first pep rally. Seniors scream go home freshman at you from the stands. They jeer and stomp feet and let you know you need to earn your place in the Wolf Pack. To survive you cannot be meek. You must stand when the teacher tells you to and scream back that you are home. You pump your fist in the air and compete for that spirit stick just like the upperclassmen do. And if you get stranded and lost in a crowd on the way out, a person clad in a black senior shirt is probably one of the ones the most likely to help get you to the side so you don't get run over.
You see a fight for the first time. Someone comes barreling past you, but a friend takes you by the collar and pulls you back just before you get rammed into. You can't help but stare and almost laugh as you see someone's fist go comically into the others cheek. And you laugh even harder when you see the two playfully wrestle the next week. You see a fight every couple of months -quickly broken up- and you either give a passing glance or form a circle to watch. Occasionally it's something good, but in the end you still walk away.
People see this school as ghetto. It's overpopulated. It's brash. It's got overused textbooks, and people from all walks of life, all different social classes. But that means nothing to them. We take in everyone who has no place else to go. Do we complain when we have to share seats in the beginning of the year? Yes. But sitting on a friend's lap is a funny story that you can tell another time, so we complain and complain but most don't actually mean it. And if they do, they get over it. We have kids here that we know do questionable things. But those are also the people you can find yourself clicking with if you put in the effort. As long as you show that you're interested, and you don't let them walk all over you, you're safe. The wolf pack takes care of its own. You just have to show that you can do the same.
People always seem surprised when I tell them I graduated from South. They're scared that I know people who will jump them if they cross me. They don't realize that we have an amazing medical academy that certifies phlebotomy, CNA, and EKG. They don't realize that we had a literary magazine where we actually got great submissions. They don't realize we have a vet academy that gives internships. A great JROTC academy that can help you. Or a firefighting academy where they go off campus. They don't see that we ourselves have a criminal justice academy. And if they do, they try and find it ironic. But what is ironic about people wanting to go and fight for people? Especially if it's for people like them? It's not ironic. It makes perfect sense.
South may have you in tears sometimes. But not for any reason particular to the school, but because it's high school. The teachers here support you, care for you, and sometimes treat you as their own. If you have an anxiety attack, teachers who don't even know you are liable to pull you into a room where others won't see and help you get your breath back. If you want to prompose, teachers will let you do it in their classroom. If you just need to explode, teachers will let you. But don't think they'll let you lying down. They themselves are also wolves in this pack, and they'll still send you to ISS. But they also know sometimes too much is too much and they won't hold you too accountable. Everyone has a day where they growl and feel like they want to take on the pack. Even they want to sometimes. But they're still responsible and smart enough to know when they bit off more than they should have, and they want you to hold the same responsibility.
South Fort Myers High School is a commodity. If you go here, you've got fire, and you'll learn how to take care of people. You won't ever plan on it, but it'll happen. You'll care, and be cared for. You'll lose yourself, but come back stronger. And by the time you hit senior year you'll be howling like the ones before you all those years ago. And you'll be howling at the people from the outside who don't understand. South isn't a bad place. It just has indiscretions from time to time. And you'll have to just roll your eyes with the rest of the school and try and show them all the good things, just like I do.
