The High School Chronicles

This was originally something I was going to write on Roblox, but for a wider audience

Chapter 1: Friendships

High School. A lot goes on within those four years. Friends you thought you knew like the back of your hand in junior high seem to drift apart from you. You meet new friends, though. Ones who give you that sense of belonging you thought you've never felt before, even though you have. You just didn't realize it. You technically belonged with those friends in junior high. And it isn't like that sense of belonging went away, nor did your friends. It just.. turned into something different. That's all.

Change is bound to happen. The only constant in life is change, and friends can outgrow each other. It's only when they try to 'fit' into each other's lives again that the real divide happens. You shouldn't have to fit into someone else's life. If you mean something to them, they're already a part of it. So, those friends from junior high that you see in the hallway, yet barely talk nowadays? You can still be a part of their lives too. Your presence is regarded whether it's verbally expressed or not. Likewise, they could've outgrown you too. But that's okay..
Why am I saying all of this, you might ask. It's my first book that I started on a literal game, and my first book ever. Why am I wasting my time writing this crap?

I say this because it matters. To me at least. Someone out there needs to hear this. This is what I needed to hear a while ago, and even now, I wish someone could be here to tell me these things. So here I am, just trying to make my mark about high school life on a whim that made me want to write at nine o'clock at night. Thanks for reading chapter one of High School Chronicles. Every chapter, I'll be talking about a particular aspect of High School life that struck me to write about it.

Okay, bye.

~End Chapter~




Chapter 2: Social Life

Kinda like the last chapter, friendships are primary to your social circle. In my opinion, they make up at least 75% of your social life. If you’re a social hermit like me who spends all their time observing other people and their social life…or not, then you likely understand how integral friendships are. But I'm not here to restate everything I covered in the last chapter. You might as well reread the last chapter if you're here for another friendship “spiel”. No, I’m here to talk about what goes on beyond your friendships when it comes to social life.

Even as I am right now, social life is rather difficult to explain. Like I said before, it isn’t just your friends. It's who you interact with, who you mesh with, who you talk to, and generally who's in your overall ecosystem. And don’t limit yourself to these small things. Your social life can be so much more than this. Your relationships are a HUGE part of this, which I’ll get into in chapter eight, so hang tight for now. Anyway, why I’m writing about social life this time around is to bring more clarity as to what it is and why it's important. I’ve already covered the former, so the next question is “why is it important?”

Social lives aren’t just about going out more and…putting yourself out there like most think it means. It isn’t that simple, and it isn’t that shallow either. Now, I’m no expert. I’m just a girl trying to make my way and find my own place in my social life. But in high school, social lives are mainly about…having fun with people you have fun with. It’s as complex as it is simple, to be honest. For me, my social life is kinda vague at a glance. Friends inviting me to do stupid stuff, pool parties, hangouts, all the works. It’s kinda basic, isn’t it? But the inner world within you when you move through your social life is essentially what makes the bulk of what your social life is. When you hang out with those friends, that feeling of belonging is a part of that inner world. In relationships, a genuine connection is a part of that world too. Even just joy when you’re with someone creates the social life from the inside out.

Humans are social creatures. We’re wired to network, connect, and bond. And we cannot be left alone.

If you’re still reading this, you’re probably thinking that I’ve just been saying a whole lot of BS. I’m just trying to keep my words as raw as possible while also building a narrative here (cut me some slack). But anyway, to answer your million dollar question on why social lives are important based on everything I said..

It's because we need it. We love it. It’s good to have one, because it doesn’t just give you new friends or strengthen relationships. It builds you up too. On the inside.

After reading this, try to reflect on your social life. Maybe you have some reconnecting to do, or maybe you’re just tired like me and don’t want to do that (which is perfectly fine too). Just… try to reconsider high school with this in mind. This was High School Chronicles Chapter two, and as always, thanks for reading.

Ok bye..

~End Chapter~




Chapter 3: Popularity

This is probably the most misunderstood aspect of high school life. It’s kind of annoying to write about, but hey.. Here I am.

So, popularity. You’ve likely seen stereotypical popular kids in movies such as BRATZ, Mean Girls, Heathers the Musical, and various other films that came out 20 years ago or more. The main clique of popular kids are almost always rude, mean, controlling, and cocky. The kind of person who’s usually the villain of the story, right? But what if that doesn’t apply. Why are popular kids associated with such negative attributes in high school movies? What if they didn’t always have to be the bad guy, you know?

Well, they aren’t. At least, not at my school. Popular kids aren’t defined by their attitude, surprisingly. They’re popular because they’re well-liked and well known. Is that bad? No. There’s this boy at my school, everyone knows his name. He’s the kind of guy who could have the whole world on his side, someone who could commit a crime and manage to charm the police officer before his hands slipped into the cuffs. But the boy is a sweetheart. That’s the difference between movie popularity and actual popularity. Being popular isn’t bad until you do bad things with it. On its own, it simply means people know you.

Now, when it comes to wanting to be popular, that's another story. I can’t think of anyone who genuinely strives to be popular in this day and age, because quite frankly, I think it's kinda cringe. But if that floats your boat, I don’t judge. Anyway, wanting to be popular isn’t bad either. But it’s to a certain extent. Never alter yourself in any way shape or form just to be popular. I tried that once in middle school, and I was really unhappy with myself. As a quick (not so quick) storytime, in middle school, popularity was the peak of the social ladder. If people liked you, you were safe from things like bullying (at least to your face) and physical altercations (mostly). And even though I just spent half this chapter talking about how popular students are misrepresented in media, the popular kids in my middle school were like… actually kinda mean. They were all the same carbon copy though. Conventionally attractive, rich, shallow, and materialistic. There was no substance because the blueprint to become popular there wasn’t designed to contain it, if that makes sense. When I tried, it didn’t feel right. It wasn’t like I changed or anything. Same glasses, acne, gap-tooth, and everything. But the reason why it didn’t feel right was because that version of popularity, or at least striving for it, strips you of your substance kind of. Overall, yes, popularity is okay. Yes, popular kids can be nice. No, do not change yourself to be liked more (especially by someone you like, which is something I'll cover in chapter five).

Popularity is fleeting anyway. Why even worry about it to be honest? Just keep being you and minding your own business (which is Life 101). This was Chapter 3 of High School Chronicles, and as always, thanks for reading.

I’m always open to ideas on what to write next regarding the topic, and I’d love to hear how you liked this so far.




Chapter 4: Bullying

Bullying isn’t just something that happens in high school, I want to make that very clear before continuing. It’s something that can follow you everywhere you go. At school, in the workplace, at home.. It’s entirely possible that bullying can come from these places too at any stage in life. But of course, to follow the theme of this collection of blurbs, I’m going to focus on the high school aspect of it.
I don’t know how bullying in high school works elsewhere or nowadays. I can’t say that it’s the same everywhere because it isn’t the same with everyone. Bullies in high school movies (yes I’m bringing up the movies again) are often depicted in an exaggerated way, and while it could very well be someone’s reality, it doesn’t cover the vast majority of how bullying works.

To start, I want to begin with a form of bullying I’ve witnessed that cuts deep. Imagine you’re in a high school classroom. For the scenario, however old you are, you’re placed in that classroom and you are around the same age as everyone else. Now, also imagine you’re close with a group of kids who present themselves as friends yet don’t quite feel like it. These friends will oftentimes make you do things to embarrass yourself, but they claim that it’s “just a joke”. Or imagine the same group of friends talking about you behind your back and saying things you couldn’t believe they thought about you.

Sounds a little different from how the media depicts it, right? Then, there’s also cyberbullying online, and physical bullying in person… it’s a lot altogether. But the reason why this kind of bullying cuts deep is because of the inconsistency it represents, especially in a time in life where you’re still searching for your place to settle down for four years until graduation. If you’re like me, you don’t like inconsistency. To be clear, though, that doesn’t necessarily mean you don’t like change, but to me, it does mean that you want stability in your relationships. And when people masquerade as friends but don’t act like it, it hurts more than you know it does. It breaks trust and leaves you vulnerable and ashamed. Bullying isn’t always physical like that, it just has to be a repeated offense against you. And even then, in my eyes, repetition isn’t always the bulk of what makes bullying bullying. For once, I can’t quite explain it, but I do know that I don’t 100% agree with the overused definition of bullying.

Secondly, bullying can come from inside your home too. And I’m not just talking about siblings, even though that is still bullying and something should be done about it if it’s happening to you. But I mean bullying from adults.. Parental figures, to be specific. A lot of people don’t really talk about it, but some parents can be bullies unto their children too. I’m going to paint a picture here now. Imagine you’re coming home from school.. Homework takes the forefront of your mind at times, and (as I’ll discuss in later chapters), other things in your life have your soul in a chokehold. And on top of that, your mom or dad (maybe even both) make your life even harder with a snide comment or a tongue lashing you didn’t ask for nor deserve. Bullying at home isn’t nearly as simple as I’m describing it, I know. But even seeing the tip of the iceberg still means you at least realize it’s there, right? And that’s what I want you to get out of this at the very least. This unreasonable and/or unwanted aggression from caretakers probably hurts the most to some people, because how can you look at parents who claim to love you and also be the same ones who hurt you intentionally too? This is what I recognize as betrayal within a child, and this scenario in particular is similar to the previous one. The person you thought loved you wasn’t exactly who you thought they were.

That hurts.

Now, what to do if you’re being bullied.. Wherever you are. I’m not going to tell you to tell a trusted adult or tell the offender to stop, or anything like that. Because I’m sure you already know that. Not to say that those methods aren’t important, they could make all the difference in some scenarios. Always tell someone if you’re being bullied. Always tell someone to stop if you don’t like what they’re doing to you, (and I’ll get into that in another chapter too). Setting boundaries like that is the first step, because it doesn’t just make it clear to the bully that they’re crossing a line, but you’re showing that you have self-respect. That’s important..
But besides that, if you’re being bullied; physically, emotionally, whatever which way.. The best thing to do in my opinion is to hold your ground. I’m not saying to concede to harassment, or to let someone continue, or to take the offensive and fight someone. No. If you’re being bullied, holding your ground looks like showing the aggressor that you won’t budge and give them the reaction they want. It sounds corny to my ears, but it’s my version of advice towards the concept of bullying.

And I get it, it’s hard to do that. People have been doing this method for decades, arguably most notably seen in resistance against Slavery in the Americas, Civil rights movements, and all other things like that. No one ever had it easy when they held their ground, but it works. It shows that you won’t be suppressed. That you are a person, you have a voice, and you don't deserve someone else’s crap.

You are a person. You have a voice. And you don’t deserve someone else’s crap.

That’s all the creative juices I can squeeze out of me today. This was chapter four of the High School Chronicles, and as always, thank you for reading.

P.S. Thanks for all the reviews to anyone who said something. They mean a lot, and it means I’m not actually that bad at this “writing a book” thing.