It all started in middle school when we became old enough to learn about judging people, possibly even earlier. When we were young you befriended people based on commonalities not based upon looks or a person’s social status, “popularity”. I was never the most popular person in school but I learned that that’s not all that matters in life it comes down to much more than that. I went through my awkward stage from about 6th to 8th grade, where every day I was totally embarrassed to walk into homeroom and have people judge me. For those three long years I wore sweatpants and a sweatshirt just about every day to school to almost hide myself. Something hit me after graduating middle school, I thought to myself I cannot go through life caring about what people think about me and say behind my back so I came into my freshman year with a whole new attitude.

The First Day of high school I wore a beautiful while floral dress and I was confident! I was on the cheerleading squad and met some really great people and some not so great people. My entire freshman year things went great for me and I loved my life. Then came around sophomore year and I made a few really big mistakes and then I went back into my hiding state. Once again I cared about what everyone was saying about me and befriending people I did not care for just to say I was friends with them. Then came junior year I was still hanging out with all these people I didn’t like and one day I came to lunch and all the seats at my lunch table were full and everyone was talking about me. That’s when I had to turn to the last resort, sit at the table with people I always thought of as weird. Every day from then on out I sat at the table I thought was full of weirdos and they turned out to be some of the best people I had ever met they always had my back no matter what happened to me throughout school, and those same people I am still friends with to this day.

After high school my attitude changed once again and I was back. I now know to give people a chance and to listen to them and get to know them before I shut them down. My life if so wonderful now and it isn’t hard work to have a wonderful life, if you just stay open minded and optimistic you will live a life full of wonderful experiences with a group of amazing people to share it with.