Today. I watched a high school basketball game: my second one since graduating from high school. I reflected a little bit back on high school... This is all I could come up with.
Life becomes so superficial in high school. I have been out of high school for eight months. A year if you don't count my second semester of high school because I only had school in the mornings.. and only every other day. I can honestly say, I don't miss it...
Somehow, all the things that used to seem so huge.. ended up being so small.
(just like everyone who has previously graduated said they would)
The car you drive.
The jeans.
The sports teams.
The grades.
The flats.
The wall of fame.
The election week.
The dances.
The headbands.
The decorations.
The grad date.
The football jackets.
The cardigans.
The perfect dress.
The perfect college.
The assemblies.
The attempts to get everyone to participate.
The lack of school spirit.
The lockers.
The latest music.
The.. who heard it first.
The.. who wore it first.
The.. who saw it first.
The.. who dated it first.
The chi curls.
The backcombing.
The lazy days in sweats.
The hoping no one noticed how greasy your hair was.
The having the best spares.
The jocks.
The cheerleaders.
The suck ups.
The people who hated the suck ups.
The theater people.
The people who sat alone by choice.
The people who sat alone.. not by choice. ( :( )
The saying goodbye as everyone parted that summer post-grad.
The harmless pranks.
The not-so-harmless pranks.
The cliques.
The making sure everyone knew just how fun your weekend was.
The gross lunches.
The amazing pizza.
The fact that there was only {supposed to be} diet pop.
The not studying for tests.
The cruising.
The parties.
The fear of diplomas.
The buying snacks for seminary.
The blocking of facebook in the computer lab.
The.. who did this to my car?
The post-game parties.
The grad party.
The who knows the coolest boys.
The realization that you are never going to need to know how do Logs in life.
The disagreements in social.
The Friday night plans.
The town hopping.
The winning of banners.
The cutest couples.
We heard it a million times, and I have known it forever, but somehow, looking back, it is just different. It is something that everyone just has to figure out for themselves. You can't tell the sixteen year old girl that it really just doesn't matter who she dated or whether or not she was a cheerleader or if she played volleyball or how she did her make up or who her best friends were and what they did the second weekend of March last year... because to a sixteen year old girl, all of that DOES matter. There is no point in trying to tell anyone this until they have experienced life after high school. I think it is just part of the brain development.. You can't tell people just how unnecessary it all is if their brain isn't ready to accept that.
Everyone. Just enjoy high school, k?
One day, you'll see.
Here I am, only eight months later. My life changed 150% after high school... and again 150% more as I got sick and had to come home from college... I am still living in this little town.. working so I can leave. It is surprising to see how the same things happen, the same gossip continues, and how people even try to suck me into it. It's crazy. What is most important to me now? Nothing on that list above. All that stuff was the center of my life or the life of those I was surrounded by for so long.
Now? The center of my life..
Well. All those things that seemed so lame, and so small, ended up being so huge.
It is making appointments and doing taxes.
It is applying for scholarships and seeing specialists.
It is trying to figure out how to organize bank statements and trying to save money.
It is learning to love vegetables and coming home at 10:30 on a Friday night just because I want to.
It is taking vitamins because I want to, not because my mom wants me to.
It is deep cleaning, and studying my scriptures.
It is planning for the future.
It is making dinner and sewing quilts.
It is {usually} being responsible.
It is working.
It is forgetting I have a cell phone.
It is reading the newspaper.
It is volunteering at the elementary school because I would rather be there than sleeping.
It is paying for a high school transcript.
It is emailing back and forth with the head of the Dental Hygiene department.
It is keeping accurate records and talking to my sister on the phone.
It is having five hour conversations with my parents about politics and current events.
It is realizing how much I love children's literature.
It is scrubbing my bathroom and keeping up on the laundry.
It is being alone, and just thinking.
I like it this way.
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agreed. you said it perfectly. =)
ReplyDeletenicely said jane.
ReplyDeleteThis is so true. It's scary, really. Knowing that your parents have known this all along. Scary knowing you'll have to let your children go through all these years of thinking they know everything.
ReplyDeleteokay. you definitely said all that I was thinking. I agree completely! love you jane :) and you're blog.
ReplyDeletei loved this!
ReplyDelete