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Is The High School Version of You the True You?
I find myself stuck in an endless security line at LAX’s Southwest terminal. Of course, I’ve chosen the slowest one, filled with folks who seem utterly lost when it comes to the whole “put your belongings on the conveyor belt” routine. We’re crawling along at a glacial pace. Finally, my frustration bubbles over, and I can’t help but mutter to anyone within earshot, “At this rate, we’ll be going backwards!”
Suddenly, I hear someone call my name from behind. I turn to see Jamie, a friend from high school I haven’t seen in two decades. I always thought he was great, but it’s surprising that he even recognized me. “You look exactly the same,” he says. “Still the quirky, witty, shoe enthusiast.” I glance down at my glitzy sandals and cringe, realizing I had a similar pair back in high school. While I’m flattered he remembers, it makes me uneasy that my tastes haven’t evolved much since then.
Panic hits me: “Oh no! I don’t want to be the same person I was in high school. That was a nightmare! I can’t let anyone think the high school version of me is still who I am!” This thought spirals through my mind for the duration of my flight from Los Angeles to JFK. I truly believe I’ve changed a lot since then, so the idea of being perceived as that awkward teenager is daunting.
Like many people, I look back at my high school years with a cringe. My only ambition back then was to blend in and be invisible. I had braces, overused hairspray, and was a fan of shoulder pads. I’ve worked hard to shed that invisible nerd persona over the years. So hearing that I might still seem like that same girl makes me doubt if I’ve really moved on. It makes me wonder if the world still sees me as that clumsy girl who was late to develop but early to wear braces.
But the more I reflect, the more I realize that high school wasn’t all bad. I had an amazing group of girlfriends—still trying to find that same vibe today. The 80s fashion was bold and fun, and the music was iconic. I often felt like a character in a John Hughes film, but in my version, Jake Ryan never returned my lost items; he and his friends would just cheat off me in math class or egg my house after a party.
Interestingly, I still jam out to the same tunes I loved back then. Morrissey is always on my playlist, and I can’t resist a classic from The English Beat. While I’ve traded shoulder pads for a more modern look, my hair still has a similar vibe to my senior portrait—thankfully, I didn’t go overboard with the hairspray. I’m still that witty redhead with a penchant for shoes, just as Jamie remembered. Those high school tastes have shaped who I am today.
So, maybe I’m not so different from my high school self after all. Perhaps none of us truly are. High school is where we first discover our likes and dislikes, express ourselves, and experience the thrill of first crushes and heartbreaks. It’s a time filled with dreams about our futures, despite the awkwardness and the drama.
Next time I bump into an old school friend, I think I’ll take it as a compliment if they say I haven’t changed. Looking back, maybe high school wasn’t such a disaster after all. Maybe I wasn’t either.
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In summary, our high school days may shape us in ways we don’t always recognize. While we might believe we’ve changed, some of those early tastes and quirks can stick around, reminding us of who we were and how far we’ve come.