PostPoems Be Artistic. Be Creative. Be Inspired!

You aren't so little anymore, you're fourteen years old, but you've been feeling little as of late. After ten years of private schooling it's time to move on and dip your toes in the real world. High school is a scary place and it doesn't get less scary with time. Believe it or not, I still have nightmares about it sometimes. St. John's had about 200 students, most of them kids you'd known for years. Franklin Central High School has well over 2,000, with the exception of five or six, all of them strangers. Of the few familiar faces, only Nathan shared a class with you, and he only stayed there for about two weeks. Just like the majority of your friends, he ends up going to LuHi. Sadly, that's not in the budget for your family. It's gonna be a hard four years, but we get through it just fine, albeit a little traumatized.

Making friends has always been difficult for you, and you have no idea where to start, especially since your one remaining friend from St. John's made it clear that he doesn't want to be your friend anymore. Dustin, unlike you, has never had much trouble making friends, not as long as you've known him anyway. People seem to flock to him while you get lost in the crowd. I don't think he meant to hurt you when he said what he said. He honestly didn't realize that in that sea of strangers he was the only friend you had. I'm not defending him, but I want you to know that I don't believe he was trying to break you down. I think he was trying to reinvent himself, and you didn't fit into the vision he had for his new life.

You've been clinging to Dustin's side since you started high school, following him around like a lost and helpless puppy. I get it, man. Friends aren't always easy to come by, and you thought that your friendship was going to last forever; but sadly, most friendships aren't built to last. Most friendships are meant to teach us a lesson; and once that lesson has been learned, most friendships come to an end. And that's a brutal lesson to learn every single time you have to learn it; and it's made even harder this time because you're just now learning it for the first time.

I'm sorry that he told you, "I'm too cool to be your friend," when you were trying to hang out with him after school. First of all, Dustin was never that cool to begin with. Ask anyone you've stayed in touch with since high school who knew him and they'll all affirm that he changes his friends like he changes his underwear. The only reason he didn't drop you sooner was because there were only nine boys in your class from Kindergarten to the Eighth Grade. Second of all, Dustin did you a favor. That relationship was past its expiration date and his rejection of you was the nudge you needed to branch off on your own. Lastly, I'm proud of you for how you handled it, especially when he came back a week later trying to save face.

He really did feel bad about what he said to you, and you accepted his apology; but when he offered his hand in friendship again you told him, "No, Dustin, you're too cool to be my friend, remember? We both know that we'll never be friends again." You didn't say this with hatred. You didn't say this with spite. There was neither malice nor resentment to be found in your voice. You accepted the friendship for what it was, a relationship that had run its course. When people decide to walk out of your life, let them. You'll meet so many other people as you continue to grow up, and the ones who stick around will prove time and again their loyalty to you. I'm not the best at taking this advice, sometimes I still don't know when it's time to let go; but take it from me, you'll save yourself a lot of grief when you let the deserters walk away. They missed out on the opportunity of growing with you, not the other way around.

From me to you,

Big Evan