From Modest Origins to the Jungle of Public School

For the first fourteen years of my life, I went to private catholic schools. I went to St. Elizabeth Anne Seaton Preschool, St. Pius X Elementary, and Regis Middle School. This is where I learned to read, write, share, and tell time. I also learned valuable life lessons such as treat everyone with respect and dress modestly etc. The typical Catholic drill. I had an absolute blast in elementary school. Everyone was friends and I loved to learn. Plus, I had a really good teacher every year. At Regis, there were multiple small cliques. Once you were in one, you couldn't get out. There were distinct lines between groups and the only reason you would talk to someone more popular than you was if you were partners for a project. The popular and sporty kids, on the other hand, had total freedom. If they wanted to pick on you, you took it. You were expected to get out of their way and be their little toys that they could play with. I have seen, multiple times, popular people pretending to be a nerd's friend then making fun of them in front of the entire class. It's heartbreaking. I have even been the butt of a few jokes too, and it’s not a good environment to be in. I'm not saying that all parochial schools are like this, and it really wasn't all bad, but these were just some of my not-so-nice experiences. Also, Regis is a very sheltered place. There is absolutely no talk at all of drugs, drinking, or serious relationship things. I'm sure that kind of stuff happened, but it was not a tolerated topic in the classrooms, hallways, or lunchroom. As you can probably assume, I was totally nervous when I decided to attend a public high school. I had absolutely no idea what to expect, which scared me. All I knew was that there were fights, and a bunch of people, and I wouldn't know anyone there. I was sure I'd be transferring back to catholic school by winter.
To my surprise, public school was wonderful. Of course, I was really nervous and felt kind of awkward my first few weeks, but people were really nice, which came as a surprise to me. I was expecting unfriendly, weird people, but I found out that public school is the exact same as parochial, minus the religious aspect. When I got involved in show choir, swimming, and dance team, I met a lot of people just like me. Some things did surprise me though. For the first time I saw PDA in the hallways (disgusting!) and heard about crazy parties that got busted by the cops (stupid teenagers), plus a bunch of stuff I'd never heard of before. But in all honesty, the pros of switching schools outweighed the cons immensely for me. It was the right choice. If you ever get faced with a tough decision, do what’s right for you and don't worry what other people will think. Don't let things you've heard scare you from doing what you want. Take a chance and it might turn out to be one of the best decisions you make. It certainly worked out that way for me. Now that I'm in public school, I feel more like myself than I have in a long time. (557 words)