The first day of school was always the most nerve-racking and exciting.  But for me, I was scared to walk into a completely new environment.  For the past five years, I had gone to a private school.  But over the summer after third grade, I found out that I would be moving to a public school.

On the first day of fourth grade at my new school, I arrived with my mom to the brand new building.  I had tears in my eyes as we walked into the school.  I was so nervous.  I tried to blink away the tears so no one would see.  My mom walked me up to my classroom, made sure I was situated, and then said goodbye.

“I’ll see you after school! It’ll be fun!” she assured me.

“Bye mom,” I told her.  Then she left.

So there I was--slowly inching my way through the doorway with my short hair resting on my shoulders and wearing a pink-and-white striped shirt with jean capris.  I hesitantly sat down in the front row in an empty seat and waited.  The room was quite large with windows lining one side and it was filled with small desks, all with green chairs.  They were slightly bigger than the ones we had at my old school, but almost the same and just as useful.

I looked around the room at all of the new faces.  I knew from that moment on, things would be different.  It just felt strange to be in this place.  Every student was different and I felt different too.  I wasn’t very tall but I wasn’t short either.  I was also a naturally shy person, so that made it even harder for me.  Back at my old school, I had a really great group of friends.  I didn’t feel as comfortable without them.  But I knew that I would have to make new friends, and once I did, it would be better.

I only knew one friend at this school.  She had gone to school with me until second grade.  I was hoping that she would sit next to me, but just then, someone came into the room and took the empty seat beside mine.  She was very skinny with long, blond hair.  She introduced herself and told me her name was Madison and she was also new to this school.  I felt a bit better then, knowing that I wouldn’t be the only new kid.

Finally, when the bell rang, the class started and the teacher introduced herself to the class.  Her name was Mrs. Buyle.  She was very welcoming and that made me feel a bit better.  Mrs. Buyle started off by giving us a worksheet that would help everyone know a little more about each other.  It was a sheet with a bunch of questions that we had to ask other students. I turned around to face the row behind me.

“Hi, I’m Sam,” I told them.  Then I looked down at my sheet to find a question.  “Have either of you ever been to

a Tigers game this summer?”

One of the girls with chocolate brown hair answered “Hi Sam! I’m Katie!  Actually, yes, I did go to a Tigers game!”
“I have too!” the second girl chipped in.  She was tall with short blond hair.  “I also like peanut butter and jelly sandwiches!”
“You do?  I didn’t know that!” teased Katie jokingly.

“Yeah!” the second girl responded, rolling her eyes.  “I’m Claire by the way,” she told me, and I wrote both of their names down next to those questions on my sheet.

They continued to joke around and seemed very giggly.  I found myself laughing too. Then a few other girls came over to talk and I got to meet them too.  It was fun to greet and learn things about many of my peers.  I got to know a lot of new friends and they were all very outgoing.  Everyone was so nice to me.  I couldn’t help but feel excited to be here.

Throughout the rest of the day, I got to explore the building with my class, and go to “specials”.   All of the teachers were kind and friendly.  I went to gym and art.  Even though we didn’t really do much except get introduced, I could tell they would probably be enjoyable classes.  I even found out that the school mascot was a nighthawk.  At the end of the school day, my class was back in the classroom getting our stuff ready to go home.  We lined up at the door like a line of ducklings, all wearing our backpacks.  When the bell rang, it was almost a race going down the stairs for the other kids.  But I just walked at a normal pace.  I had mixed feelings of the day.  At times, I really missed my old scool, but on the other hand, this new school seemed pretty okay.  The people contrasted greatly from those at my old school and it felt peculiar to be in a different place.  I didn’t always know what to think.  It was a lot to take in.

My parents were waiting outside anxiously waiting to hear how it went.  I recounted all of the events of that day on the walk back to our house.  And without meaning to, I smiled.

I believe that the events of that day, although simple, changed the way I viewed the world and my surroundings, especially from the first impressions I received the moment I walked into the classroom.  I realized that there would always be tough challenges in life you have to face.  But even with these challenges, there is a way to pass them and an opportunity to learn from them.  I also learned that there are people and situations that make you feel uncomfortable.  You have to be able to step out of your comfort zone.  You learn something new every day.  It might not always be something you like, but that’s just part of life.  I think about the way my life would be if that day had never existed.  But I am so glad that it did exist.