Dear Recent 8th Grade Graduate,
Congratulations! You made it through middle school. You made it through what quite possibly were and will be the most awkward and drama-filled years of your life. Now, you’re in store for the next chapter of your life: high school.
You’re going to walk through the doors on that very first day of freshman year scared out of your mind. There’s no way to avoid that. Just know that when you walk through those doors, you’re entering the best four years of your life.
As you scurry through the halls that very first day, hopelessly trying to find your classes, just know that it’s okay to ask for help. It’s also okay to be late on the first day. The teachers know what you’re going through. The upperclassmen have all been where you are before and they’ll help you. And the students in your class that will stare at you when you walk in late have no right to judge you because chances are, next period they’ll be in your position.
When you pick your seat in class, try to pick a seat next to someone you might not have been friends with in middle school. It’s a new era of your life. It’s time to make some new friends.
Your teachers are going to introduce themselves to you. Make sure you’re very polite and personable. Engage in intellectual conversation with them. You need to be on good terms with your teachers if you want to get into National Honor Society some day or get a good recommendation letter for college.
The dreaded lunch bell will ring, and it will be time to enter that zoo of a cafeteria and attempt to find your friends, buy your food, and eat your food, all with in 20 minutes. It might be a little rough the first day, but plan a meeting spot with your friends and if you don’t have a lot of time, maybe packing your lunch is a better idea.
As the day goes on, you’ll notice that everything is getting a little easier. You’re able to make your way around the school without getting lost. You’re even seeing familiar faces in the hallways. If it all gets easier within seven hours, imagine how easy it’ll be after seven days.
Okay, enough with the first day of school. I promise you’ll survive. You’ll make friends, you’ll probably get some homework, and sorry but you probably won't fall in love—if that’s what you were hoping for.
Just know, that when you enter that building that very first day, you begin making memories that will last your whole life. High school is a time where you will truly find yourself. And it all starts with the first day.
