Monday, June 13

Monday's Meme

This week's challenge looks easier, but requires so much reflection and deep thought. It's Monday, is that possible?


This week [June 12th] I am borrowing an upcoming question for 10 on tuesday it is:
10 Things You Wish You Knew When You Were in High School.
Sounds like great layout material right?!? I think I remember seeing one similar to this in Scrapbooks Etc. by Tracy Kyle. Anyways, if you'd like to add a picture of yourself in high school please do so. Add any reflections of yourself at the time if you wish.

So again I have to think back to those memorable days back in the 80s when I was just a skinny awkward brace faced girl who had the pleasure of 4 years in an all girl catholic high school. Being the oldest child in the family, I was really clueless about most things when I started high school. I had no one who had gone before me to shed a little light on the unknown and I am sure anything my parents did in highschool they didn't want me to know about, so they never really talked about their experiences. If I had the ability to construct a time machine with plans and parts purchased on the internet, this is what I wish I had known:
  1. Even with bird legs and no chest, You look great!! Always thought I was so awkward and ugly in my younger days, but I was a cute little thing. I wore a size 0 and never appreciated it. I ate whatever I wanted and never gained an ounce. Those were the days.
  2. Having your picture taken is a good thing! Let people take your picture, in fact, insist on it. Take more pictures of friends, family and yourself. Everytime I have to go back and look for a picture of myself during these years, I always have to search, there aren't many.
  3. Spend more time with your grandparents. When I became that snotty teenager, I spent way less time with the GPs which was unfortunate. They were always so wonderful to me and when I turned 13 suddenly they were a drag. I had way more important things to do rather than call or visit them. Boy do I regret that now. So much more I should have done and more time I should have spent just talking to them, asking all the questions I have now.
  4. Girls are fickle. My mother only told me this a million times. I never listened. I cried many a tear over stupid crap that girls would say or do. When you go to school with 1,000 girls, this is bound to happen quite frequently. This is probably one of the huge turning moments in my life that really made me cautious around girls. They were so rotten and mean. And to think that I was popular in school, wonder what it was like for the less popular girls....yikes.
  5. Take a picture of your room. In my room, there was some fake brick along one wall and to cover it up, I made a huge collage with magazine clippings, pictures, flyers from clubs, and all kinds of junk. It was so cool and a perfect representation of that time. I have no pictures of it! duh!
  6. Having mean parents is a good thing. My parents were totally strict and I had very little fun in my teen years, so when I look back now sure it may have been a tad more boring than the typical teen but I was a good girl. I could've gotten into a whole lot of trouble, but I didn't...thanks mom.
  7. Go away to college. I didn't go away for school and most of my friends did. My siblings were so young when I would've left and I didn't want to miss them. Plus, anytime I was away from home for longer than 2 days, I would get so homesick that I actually made myself physically sick. I should've went though, they would've been there when I got back.
  8. Wear sunblock. Never wore it and burned every time, duh! Could've saved myself a lot of pain by just wearing it.
  9. Be a little nicer to Ed Lim. This was one of my first "dates". My parents had strict rules on dating and I was not allowed to go out one on one with a boy til I was officially a junior in high school. I could get past this rule by going out in a group and shockingly, my mom allowed me to go to the homecoming dance with this boy when I was a freshman. She saw no threat in this little asian boy, so I got to go. Thought he had a cool haircut and liked the same music, but after the dancedumped him quickly but that did not stop him. He left flowers and notes on my doorstep all the time and so I got mean to get rid of him. My mom thought the stalking was cute. He eventually stopped, but every year he left a single rose on my doorstep on my birthday, no note and we knew it was him. Did it til we moved. Six years of flowers.
  10. Lying and cheating will get you no where. I had a wonderful boyfriend in high school and totally cheated on him with a guy I thought was better. He had a car. This started my infamous lying phase. I was a pathological liar to everyone and my mother not only caught me, but grounded me for a month. I always tell people the story of how I got grounded for cheating on my boyfriend, but as she pointed out, I was grounded for lying.

I think most of the "mistakes" I learned were worth some of the heart ache and pain. They made me who I am today, shaped my persona, changed me. For the most part, I loved high school, I really did. It was for the most part, a really fun time in my life. I had incredible friends who really didn't care about fashion or boys, we just had fun. I don't know if I would repeat it, but when I remember it, I am usually smiling.

1 comment:

Mimi said...

What a bittersweet list - so many true lessons on that list.

ShareThis