I’m not going to lie; I didn’t have high hopes for middle school. Everyone had gotten their class assignments in August before school started. I was at first excited just to get the information. I thought my friends and I would be together, just as we had been in elementary school, but sadly I was wrong. My friends all had been put in the same classes, while I was the only one in our group to be put in a separate ones. I felt like a pariah, a loner. I believed that my friends would share great experiences and stories, while I would always be out of the loop. I didn’t feel any better when I began to hear rumors and horror stories about my new teachers. I heard they were crazy, mean, addicted to drugs, etc.; all valuable information that could easily turn an impressionable 12- year old against school. To top it all off, I knew absolutely no one in my class. I dreaded the first day of school; I felt that I would have no friends and insane teachers. The only window of hope I had for the school year was drama club; if my friends and I were all in that, at least I wouldn’t always be out of the loop. Seventh grade wasn’t looking good.

On the first day of school, despite all of my dread, I was pleasantly surprised. I walked into homeroom and to my surprise, I actually knew people. My teachers were all normal (for the most part) and I had a great class. My English teacher even ran the drama club. I felt much better about the year after the first day.

Flash forward four months later, and it was December. School was going great, and I had made some new friends. In terms of academics, I gravitated toward English. I loved how challenging the class was; my teacher really pushed us to challenge ourselves and seek perfection, but she did it in a way that made us want to succeed. I quickly found myself looking forward to class every day. Drama club signups were just around the corner as well, and I was praying to get in. The thirty spots were filled by lottery, and around sixty people had signed up. I, along with a few of my friends, had made it into the club and had gotten parts in the play. We traveled to Festival a few months later and won bronze. Also, to my dismay, I had won an all-star cast award for my role. The award gave me a confidence boost concerning my acting ability, and encouraged me to push myself with each role I get, in order to achieve perfection each time.

Soon after Fest, seventh grade was over. It was the first year I was truly sad for school to be over. Seventh grade was, and still is, my favorite year of school. I didn’t feel I could have a better school experience. Eighth grade began soon enough, and I entered it with a positive attitude. I had several friends on my team and I had been put into honors classes. I gravitated toward English again, and though I was not as challenged this year, I gained more confidence in my writing ability. I had always known I was a good writer, but I didn’t think I was anything extraordinary. I went into eighth grade English and my written work was, to my surprise, praised constantly. It made me feel really good inside. My favorite memory from the year was in English as well. We were talking about academic success in life and everyone immediately said that my friend, who was extremely smart, would definitely be sucessful. I was never one to really show off my intelligence to people, so I kept quiet, even though I felt a little upset that my peers didn’t feel I was on the same level as my friend. My teacher then spoke up, saying that she was sure I could do it as well. I’m sure most of my class didn’t hear her comment, but I did. It made me feel great; I didn’t feel inferior to my friend anymore. One comment had a huge impact.

The rest of the year has gone well for me. I made it into drama club again and got a part. We won silver this year at Fest with a great show. I’ve made many new friends and have grown as a person. I feel I’m ready to begin high school and face the challenges ahead of me. I hope to study law at Harvard one day. As a result of my middle school journey, gone is the worried 12 year old of 2011, and here is the confident freshman of 2013.