Being the ‘new kid’ is never fun. It’s awkward, scary, and lonely. Just in my high school years I’ve managed to change schools four times, each year spent at a different school. Before that I also switched schools during second grade, so I’m well acquainted with the situation. However, that doesn’t mean I find the situation any more comfortable.
I used to be very sociable and outgoing, one of the top students in my year. Then, my first move happened. I was 7 years old. My mother found a new job in Huntsville, seven hours away from where we lived in Mobile, Ala. It’s hard to remember everything exactly, but I remember the house feeling so empty after we had packed up. I couldn’t really argue about it, but regardless I was still upset and spent most of the seven-hour drive ignoring both of my parents. Though the worst part was when I finally went to my school. It was predominately white, which made me feel horribly out of place, so I avoided talking to anyone.
I didn’t even get my first real friend until the year after in third grade. His name was Eli Comfort and I remember very clearly the first words he said to me.
“You like Undertale?” He had asked randomly on the first day of school, I still don’t know why. Lucky for him, that was my favorite game at the time. That started our years-long friendship.
Being friends with Eli brought back some of my outgoing nature again and I managed to make a tiny little friend group. Of course, as we grew up some friends came and went, but I was happy and actually looked forward to going to school each year. During the middle of freshman year, I had to move to a different house, but I was fortunately still in the school system. However, money was becoming a problem for my family and staying in the city we were in was becoming a problem. So, the next move happened.
The summer before sophomore year, my family made the long drive to Humble, Texas. My mom had, once again, found a job that paid even better. I was old enough to understand why this time. My mother asked me over and over if I was okay with it, and I always said yes. Looking back on it, I definitely wasn’t, but I wanted her to be happy.
When I first arrived in Humble, I felt sick to my stomach because of how crowded my new high school was. The teachers were kind, but the kids there thought I was an easy target for bullying. I couldn’t manage to make a singular friend throughout the school year and almost got into fights a few times. It got so bad that I started considering dropping out of school entirely. Eventually, sophomore year ended. I dreaded going back to that school so much so that I spent summer break convincing my mom to let me do online instead. Eventually, she caved and junior year was spent entirely online.
Online school wasn’t horrible. In fact, I found myself with a lot of free time. The issue that became apparent really quickly though was the lack of face-to-face interaction. As much as I dreaded interacting with other students, I need that social interaction to help balance myself and, shockingly enough, online interaction is more anxiety inducing than in person. I don’t even remember the name of any of the kids in my classes. That year was spent dealing with a large majority of my mental health issues – sleeping and playing video games instead of doing school work. Junior year ended and I decided, for one last time, to change schools again.
The final school change was here at Kingwood Park for senior year. Just like before, it was scary and I considered swapping back to online school at the beginning. My mom encouraged me to at least try the first semester, and I’m so glad she did. I still hear the same little giggles in the hallways, but I don’t care anymore. I’ve made a few friends that give me that interaction I needed, even if they’re a little crazy. School is hard but not overbearing. Maybe it’s because I’m a senior, but this has been the best school year I’ve had so far.
Being the new kid multiple times is not fun. I don’t really know where I belong when it comes to others. My biggest take away from it all is that you should always get involved. Join a club, make a club, or just do something that can help you branch out to others. My biggest help so far has been writing stories for journalism, but I’ve also joined the art club here. The first interaction was a little intimidating, but it paid off ten-fold. Both of those groups have helped me find people who I can manage talking to. Best advice: Just find your people and stick to them. It’s as easy as that.
