Coming of Age 1: The Move

In third grade, I was forced to move from my home in Columbus, Ohio to Dallas, Texas. While Dallas is a great city, it was an extremely tough transition for me. I had to learn to adapt to a new school and make all new friends. In my first year, I did not do well in either of those categories.

In my first year, it seemed like just by being the new kid, I was almost unanimously disliked.  Social circles had already been established and the small elementary school it seemed to adhere to strict social hierarchies where I was close to the bottom. Because of this, the friends that I did have were not always the best influences. These were kids who also had been somewhat rejected by the third grade social groups and we seemed to form a dysfunctional friend group of misfits. In my first year at Hyer Elementary, I went to the principle’s office on at least four separate occasions. Needless to say, I was not leaving a good first impression. While my friends were not necessarily helping me to fit in at the school, I am still greatly thankful to them.

During these first few years in Ohio, it was the only time in my life I have ever truly felt like an outcast. Not having many friends, while it was tough, greatly helped me to realize who I was and what kind of person I wanted to be. I had to decide for myself how I was going to act and live, rather than being influenced by my friend group. My family, having 7 kids, was all going through a relatively difficult time. These first few years of transition I think really strengthened our bond as a family. We had to rely on each other because none of us had any close friends we could talk to for a while.

Even though they were a difficult few years, I am thankful that I experienced this. It taught me about who I was and strengthened my character. Additionally, because we had to rely on each other for help and advice, the first few years in Texas were able to strengthen our family’s bond as a whole. I think that I really grew up in these first couple years. My life in Texas did get consistently better and I have sincerely enjoyed and loved my time here. Now I have hundreds of friends and people I can talk to but I will still never forget my first few difficult years there.