Middle School
It was a cloudy day with the sun barely breaking through like a flashlight in the fog. The first day of middle school was finally here! Leaves decorated the ground its bright reds, yellows, and oranges. The air was perfumed with an evergreen smell. I thought to myself, what will happen today? Having no clue of what the day would hold, I felt scared, curious, and brave at the same time. Then all of a sudden, a big yellow vehicle with the engine sputtering went down the road and came to a halt right in front of me.
The bus stopped so quick that it seemed if it kept going it would go off a cliff. My brother and I who were sitting next to each other didn’t talk the whole ride. Nervous for the upcoming events, we arrived at the school and saw faded colors of red, yellow, white, and black which were the colors of the school. Paint was chipped off on walls and was falling off doors. Lots of people got back together getting to know what they did over the summer. All the 6th graders were called to the gym to be introduced to their new teachers. I sat on the bleachers, gladly finding my friends from elementary school in their new school clothes. Each of the teachers told us their name and explained “Line up with your first period teacher,” so everyone lined up accordingly. I remember one of my friends, Colton, got in the same class as me and I was excited to have someone to sit by that I knew.
When I got to class, I sat down at a table with Colton and two other people I didn’t really know. It was hot in the room and the teacher’s projector clicked on with a flash of lights. With shining chairs and tables that just got cleaned, I was prepared for the day. I had the first 45 minutes with Mr. Villa, and he basically used his time saying “You’re going to be taking a lot of notes,” and other things that would happen. Unfortunately, he was right. I had to take notes almost all day in most of my classes. My classmates and I were workers, working a shift of writing. The 2 classes that I was most exited for were P.E. and band. In those periods, the teachers just talked about what we would be doing over the year. In P.E., the they said that we would go over lots of sports units which caught my attention. I love sports and I couldn’t wait to play them with my friends. In band, the teacher told us about what instruments people would learn to play. In elementary school, I imagined me playing a small instrument like the flute. But when I heard that only a couple of people could play the saxophone, I thought, that would be awesome to play!
I got off the bus with my brother finally seeing the sun burst out of the clouds making a beautiful blue sky. We walked down a hill to get to my house with the new school clothes that my generous grandpa and grandma got us. Shadows surrounded houses in the neighborhood as we walked into the cul-de-sac and the sound of cars buzzing down the road echoed in the background. As soon as we got to the door, my dad came out with his phone videoing us. He celebrated exclaiming “Yaaaaaaay! You made it through the first day of middle school,” which made me grin because I thought the day was easier than I expected. I wondered, would middle school always be like this? The rest of the day flew by. I thought about how it went, and tried to think how the next days would come.
For the next couple of days, I went to my first class with Mr. Villa, and then repeated the cycle over and over again: take notes, learn the rules, and go to my next class. After a while, my fingers stung with the pencil in my hand. The smell of led invaded my lungs and made me want to snap the pencil in half, but I calmed down and just kept writing. What I think is funny is some of the teachers said that the first week might be boring! With a big new school comes a big new responsibility, and I was responsible. I took notes as I was told and did everything I needed to start the year off well. I was a poster child, and I was ready to take on middle school.
“Keep working little chickadees,” cooed Mrs. Anderson, my language arts and social studies teacher. She was already getting used to her new students. It wasn’t that hard but my first real assignment took some work. Is this how middle school is? I thought. If so, bring it on! I continued on my worksheet, working and working until I thought it was more than good. Nothing is like the sense of victory came to me clenching my paper with the light reflecting off it when I finished. I know I can do this. Now, I just have to prove it, and that’s what I did. I worked hard through all of my classes, everyday.
Over most of the year, I would walk down the shiny hallway, trying to dodge the green, blue, and pink gum on the floor, getting to my next classes. I remember that people would stand in the same place down the hallway every day, with the same smell of the school in the air, and the cement walls surrounding it. A big help with middle school for me were my friends. They would work with me, talk with me, and made me feel better when something was bugging me. They also helped me build my confidence and perseverance so I knew I was doing a good job. The teachers were like kings and we were like peasants. Most of us would listen to them and did what we were told. To me, that was just fine.
I finally made it! The last day of school. Through all the challenges I faced over the year, I had one more to go. I couldn’t believe I had to say goodbye to my friends. We have gone through the whole school year together, talking to each other, telling jokes, laughing, and just being ourselves. I knew that it would be hard not to see them for 2 months, but I think I could handle it. After all, I made it through my first year of middle school. On the last day, I went to my first period teacher, and got ready to go to the gym for the talent show. I thought it was fun sitting by my friends most of the time watching the acts. The show was over in a blink. All of a sudden, I was already back at class and the bell dinged with a booming sound singing to everyone that school was over. I remember, right before I got on the bus, I looked back at the school and said to myself, “See you next year!”
Middle school had lots of challenges. From assignments to being stressed out, anything could come my way. I just had to stay strong through it. Every day will be different. I just had to deal with the teachers telling me what to do, and papers being tossed at me for homework, folding as I picked them up with a fresh smell of copies wafting in the room. Even though it threw me under the bus sometimes, middle school was the best part of my life. I think that middle school is the start of growing up. It doesn’t matter what challenges came to me. It’s how I faced them. What matters is what happens during the hours between the bus ride to, and from school. So make everything count.