High School. That mystical place where as rumor had it, there was no dress code, parties every weekend, and the lunches are better. Theses rumors need to be dispelled. They are not true. Awkward, and other teen shows like them have us to believe that there is a set of popular kids, smart Asians, druggies, and the rebels without a cause.
This perspective is purely how the writers of the scripts felt how high school should be portrayed. And the side effects of that is the U.S. population fourteen and under, believe this is truly how high school is. They think you actually know who is cool and who is not from the get go.
Our main objective to finding friends in high school is to find somewhat sane people we share a common subject. A class, hobby, or just the same favorite band can be shared. Maybe we meet them through a mutual friend or we could literally just happen to bump into them in the hallway. Some of us are lucky enough to meet our best friends by the simple act of sharing gum. My friend Audrey and I met by not wanting to have to save half a piece of paper.
Choose carefully and proceed with caution. These people you have found may not be the people they were when you found them. We don’t know what is going on in their lives or what they have already gone through. It`s like walking into a dark room for the first time. We have no clue where the dresser is or if shoes are in the middle of the floor, waiting for you to trip over them. After you have been in the dark room for a while, your eyes adjust and you begin to get a feel for the room. We know where the shoes are and you side step them to get to the other side of the room, where there is another door with a glimmer of light shining from underneath.
Don’t get lost in the sea of looking for friends. Looking for new friends is great; don’t forget about the old ones. The ones you ate lunch with everyday last year and finger painted with in the third grade. Make sure you drop them a line every once in a while and always make time for them. Introduce them to your new friend. If they need you, be there. And always remember, they are finding new friends too.
In the mystical place of high school these are just some of the ways to help you find new friends and balance the old. And in the words of Sadie, from Awkward,” You`re welcome.”