Part 1
I was a normal kid growing up. I had a normal life in a good neighbourhood and enough friends to keep me happy. From as far back as I can remember I never had any difficulty making new friends. I do remember a time during soccer practice when my dad commented that I was not socialising with my teammates much. I thought nothing of it at the time.
In my early years of high school I was happy. All of my oldest and closest friends attended the same high school as me and life was good. As a group my friends and I inducted others into our click and I had more friends than ever. I was not the leader of the group. I had never quite been a leader. However my oldest and best friend was. I thought nothing of it at the time.
Around the midpoint of my high school journey something happened. Unrest in my circle of friends led to the banishment of our leader; my oldest and best friend. I would like to say I was above the petty situation but I was not. I was a follower not a leader. I stood with the crowd and held my pitchfork as high as the rest of them. I thought nothing of it at the time.
Soon after our group fell apart. With no leader to establish stability we quarrled on the most minor of issues. Eventually, the group split in two; some went back to our exiled leader while others stayed. I was stubborn. I stayed with my new friends while my oldest friends reunited. I thought nothing of it at the time.
For the remainder of my time in high school I was detached. My group of friends, my new friends, were indecisive; as was I. As a whole we had no direction. We were stagnant. I felt that I could be the the leader but I did not want to. I was a follower not a leader. So i never stepped up. I thought nothing of it at the time.
For the first time in my life I became unhappy. I did not make any new friends and I felt less attached to my current ones. I had arrested my social development and high school was no longer a place of new possibilities. It was a constant reminder of the mistakes I made and instead of stepping up I wallowed in them until graduation. I thought nothing of it at the time.
End Part 1
Tags: bc, british columbia, canada, friend, friendship, high school, learn, lesson, life, reflection, vancouver, youth
