Being Popular
Some of you might not know this about me, but I was homeschooled up until 7th grade. I actually repeated 7th grade because the public school figured I was too young for 8th grade, but that’s neither here nor there. As a kid I struggled really hard with anxiety, especially in large crowds. Being packed into a crowd not only made me uncomfortable, but it made me feel real panic. I’m telling you this because I can vividly remember my first day of 7th grade. I rode the bus in and waited outside the building until they opened the doors. Then, like a herd of cattle, myself and all the other students pushed through the open doors into the main hallway. I made it through my first class and then got to my second class, Advanced Math with Mrs. Beilfuss, and that’s where it all went downhill. I can remember sitting in math class, with all these new students sitting around me, and one kid (shout out to Mikey-O) going, “Hey man, you look really pale.” He was right, I was pale, sweaty, and felt...