Transition From Middle School To High School

One simple experience can make a big difference in one’s life. Every child has to make the tough transition from middle school to high school. This milestone was especially hard for me. This single circumstance transitioned me from a sheltered child to a mature adult. For the most part, I had an easy childhood. I attended a small Catholic school in my hometown. My graduating class was around sixty people, and I knew each of them personally. We grew up together. I was with the same group of kids year after year. There was no need to make new friends because I had lifelong friends right beside me. I met them at the age of five, and I still haven’t lost contact with most of them. I was comfortable where I was. My childhood allowed me to live a sheltered life and not experience the horrible things some kids have to deal with. The small private school I went to shaped who I am today. I was a shy child. If I didn’t know someone well, I wouldn’t
talk a lot. I didn’t need to be social; I was with the same people every day. Growing up with the same kids blindfolded me from the world. I did not get a chance to meet new people and experience new things because everything I needed was right in front of me. The transition to high school opened my eyes to the world. The first day of high school was a nightmare.
I experienced new circumstances that I never had to deal with. On the first day, I heard people talking about the drugs they were going to do after school at the local gas station. Those conversations were not rare. High school opened up to experiences to me. I walked in not knowing a single soul. All my lifelong friends went to the local private high schools. Because of my family’s situation, I had to go to the public school in town. This school is one of the largest in the area. My graduating class had around seven hundred students. I went from a tiny middle school where I knew everyone, to this giant high school where I didn’t know a single person. I was forced to grow up. I had to come out of my shell and make new friends. Suddenly being on my own made me realize I was not a child anymore. I took this information and made the best of it. I learned how to be a leader in my community. I was no longer naïve to the world. These new surroundings opened my eyes to the real
world. Going to this large high school was hard for me, but it turned out to be one of the best experiences for me too. I matured a lot over the past four years. I had to learn how to stand up for myself and be assertive. Nothing was being handed to me anymore. I was basically starting over. High school made me attain self-knowledge. I learned how to be a leader in my community and emerge from the shell I had been living in. I gained new experiences and had to learn what the world was all about. This one experience transitioned me into a mature adult who knows more about the world.