The first day of middle school, dread and fear.

This is what started my eighth grade year.

 

I knew no one, not one single friend

“This is how it stays, until the end.”

 

I sat in class, with people around me

Waiting until somebody found me

 

After months had passed, I would begin

To find my place; learn to fit in

 

My happiness was here, I thought for sure

I found friends I had been begging for.

 

Right then, I was the happiest kid alive

With friends, I could grow, survive, and thrive.

 

We teased other kids, and called them names

No way, we wouldn’t let them play our games.

 

But this all changed in one single day

A new life schedule was headed my way

 

“Son, we want you in all the advanced classes

You shouldn’t learn at the speed of molasses”

 

But I had worked so hard, waited so long

To have my friends torn from me felt so wrong

 

I wanted to scream, shout and cry

But instead, I held it inside and became shy

 

Harboring feelings of rage, anger and sadness

Hid inside, conceiving madness

 

A life of extreme lonliness

trapped inside a human fortress

 

A knife, I thought, could ease the pain

The sadness, this life, lost in the rain

 

I thought and tried, sat and cried

I was alive and alone, without pride

 

I didn’t want this whole new strife

I wanted my friends, my previous short lived life

 

Unfortunately for me, I had no choice

I had to sit without a voice

 

I was an outcast in this new group

A new kid left out of the loop

 

No friends at lunch, no way to talk

I could only nod, think, and walk

 

I questioned, “Is this life for me?

A dark and lonely destiny?”

 

I begged and begged for something brighter

A change, some color for this grey fighter

 

Months passed on like a fuzzy haze

While I dreamed of the good ‘ol days

 

And on one fulcrum day

A future friend walked my way

 

We laughed and talked, sighed and walked

I must admit that I was shocked

 

She was smart, caring, and friendly

She even cared for someone like me

 

We talked about near everything

No matter what, she was accepting

 

She told me of her recent struggle

Life for her was a nice big puzzle

 

I told her of my saddened life

How it felt like a carving knife

 

She had a few simple words for me

But somehow they were encouraging

 

“You can change your life, you see

You’re only as happy as you choose to be”

 

Even so, I took them deep to heart

And tried to find a brand new start

 

I looked around for the bright side

I had a friend, a family; my eyes opened wide

 

A change of life, emotions, and places

A wide variety of whole new faces

 

This brand new world, such a place to be

Why would I try to take it from me?

 

To this day I myself am glad

My life has changed; I’m no longer sad

 

Thank you friend, for teaching me

Happiness is an overwhelming sea

 

Thank you friend; you’re like no other

You’ve shown me a life in color