Hey There, Freshie

Class of 2009: The author, Melanie Goldberg, second from left bottom row, and her friends celebrate the end of high school.

Class of 2009: The author, Melanie Goldberg, second from left bottom row, and her friends celebrate the end of high school.

by Melanie Goldberg

Imagine that it’s September. You’re taking this deep breath and walking up the stairs of your new school. That is, it’s early September and it’s your very first day of HIGH SCHOOL. Which could be a bit of a freak-out. You walk into a classroom and peer around, half-hyperventilating, trying to sort out some familiarity among the new faces. But you can’t find any. You think bitterly of how your parents made you come to this dreaded place and sigh, jealous of your friends who are of course ALL starting some other high school TOGETHER. More depressed than ever, you decide to sit alone in a chair, staring at the floor while moping through your oh-so-sorrowful first day.

What you don’t realize is that at least half of the other people in your room have just done the very same thing.

But wait. Imagine that it’s still early September. Except this time you’re walking into the classroom on your first day of high school with three or four of “OMG THEY’RE MY BFFL!!!!” You sit down, cool as ever talking about the summer and eighth grade as if they’re both such ancient history. You hear a few of the “Can you even believe how old we are?” and “God we’re really high school freshmen!!” rippling across the room as you peer around. And that’s when you notice the new people. Like, that guy in some hot button-down and neat kipa texting on his phone in a corner. That red-haired girl at a desk searching through her definitely new American Eagle bag, breathing in and out ever so steadily. Both are all alone; like really without even one friend and no one’s caring enough to walk over and introduce themselves. You glance back at your friends and sigh happily thanking God you’re not one of them.

What you don’t realize this time is that the other half of the people in your room have just done the exact same thing.

Say what you’d like about either freshmen but the fact remains that they were both WRONG. That’s because high school really is a totally new beginning for everyone. It doesn’t matter if you’re there with friends on the first day or you make them throughout the first week ... month ... or even year. You now are getting this whole new chance to recreate yourself. You’re walking in with this almost totally clean slate, which is an awesome opportunity that comes way too infrequently. Like, you’re going to have to spend the next four years of your life with these people, so you might as well get used to that fact early on. And the best way to do that is to have a good attitude about it no matter what situation you’re thrust into.
“On my first day of high school I was a little scared,” reminisced Tova Medetsky, a senior at Shulamith High School for Girls. “I mean, I practically knew no one and everything was so new and crazy. But you know what? It really wasn’t so bad. I had totally over-worried and now I can even look back and love the four years I spent here with a totally new but great group of friends.”

As my fellow seniors and I think back to our freshman years, we realize our wrongs. Just because we were “stupid little freshies” doesn’t mean you have to be.

“I remember that on my first day of high school there was this girl eating lunch in a corner by herself. I had gone in with a ton of friends but none of us really had the guts to go and invite her over. By the end of the week though she sort of drifted over and joined our conversations and by the end of freshman year she was one of my good friends. I wish I could’ve gone over and started the friendship sooner, though. I don’t know what I was so scared about,” recalled a classmate of mine, Masha Kishkina.

Goldie Leibowitz, also a Shulamith senior, suffered an embarrassing start to her freshman year.
“I remember that on orientation I actually missed the bus to take us on our bowling trip so the security guard had to drive me in his convertible to the alley,” she said. “Even though I was at first pretty upset and embarrassed about being the only freshie to miss the bus, it was so cool to be in his convertible and that day actually ended up great. It sort of singled me out as that freshman so I wasn’t an unknown anymore.”

Whether you’re starting high school with, or without friends, you can still go into that room with at least some ounce of excitement in place of some nervous attitude, even if you are going to be in this alone like Tova was. Or instead of thinking that that girl hyperventilating alone had a nice bag, go over to her and compliment her on it in order to start a conversation, like Masha could’ve. It’s those little steps that can really improve someone’s first day. So what’s the harm in you actually trying it, no matter which type of freshmen you are? For Goldie it worked out just fine, but you’ll see how it goes. And if the day winds up bad, hey it really is only the FIRST day.

So imagine that it’s early September. You barely even notice the steps as you race up them with barely a minute left till the bell rings for first period. That is, it’s your first day of senior year and which teacher do you have first period again? You quickly call the question over your shoulder to the two friends you’ve just taken the train to school with and the one you met exactly four years ago to this day answers. You smile at that memory, panting as you reach your locker just as the bell rings.

You turn to the friend whom you’ve known forever and suddenly notice two obvious freshman walking past your clique. The three of you stare on trying to be the intimidating seniors while smiling slightly inside. As they turn the hallway’s corner, the first freshie, an unhealthy color red, glances at the second, turns to her and says, “Hey, I like your bag.”

Melanie Goldberg is a senior at Shulamith High School for Girls in Brooklyn.

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