It was a gorgeous sunny day, not too hot with a nice breeze. I decided to take a walk, being in nature and taking walks is one of my absolute favorite things to do and something that I do very often. I love the way that nature makes me feel and I get excited not knowing what I might stumble upon during my little journey.
I choose to take a path that I haven’t taken before, I kept walking and walking, and I was passing large open fields and houses with people in their backyards enjoying this summer day. I found a little sidewalk that I decided to follow and lo and behold I found myself at a middle school.
I looked around at the school from the outside. I could see trailers and a bunch of school buses in the parking lot waiting for summer break to end in a few weeks. Farther down, I saw a basketball court and a track field. I couldn’t stop smiling. I found myself taking a trip down memory lane.
When I was in elementary school, I was very outgoing, you could call me a class clown, I loved to make people laugh and would go to great lengths to do so. Going from a smaller elementary school to a very large secondary school for my middle school years was very challenging for me. I became very shy socially, the teen years had me questioning my self-esteem as a lot of us go through, I also had my fair share of bullies. Next came high school, a few of those years were challenging as well, but senior year was an absolute blast as I came out of my shell and became the outgoing girl that I was back in elementary school.
As with most people, I had a lot of not-so-fond memories of middle and high school, but I also had some incredible memories, ones that will stick with me for a lifetime. As I walked past this middle school, I was flooded with memories. I was truly reminiscing about my school days and it left me feeling so uplifted. Despite all of the negative memories of my last few years of school, there were a lot of good memories that I carry with me.
I was amazed that the mere sight of this school that I ran into could bring back so much happiness, could bring me back to a place of much simpler times when our whole world revolved around school, unaware of what the real world had in store. The memories started flooding in and there I stood in a moment of bliss.
I started to recall the sound of the bell in-between classes, and how excited we were to hear that bell, especially when school let out for the day. I remembered the days when I used to try to keep up with everyone running the mile on the track, I had to walk half of it most of the time! The lunch tables where I sat, even if I was alone as I adjusted to a new school or was just socially distant. Carrying a larger-than-life backpack filled with books, trapper keepers, a TI-83, spiral notebooks, and Ticonderoga pencils. I found myself thinking of old friends and peers and how much they have influenced my life today.
The memories didn’t stop there, I found myself smiling as I remembered running trying to catch the bus as it drove away without me, dressing up for yearbook pictures, and getting all of my friends to sign my yearbook. The words “have a great summer!” are forever etched in my mind. Last, but not least, my locker was a little piece of comfort, a familiar corner in an unfamiliar place.
I love taking a trip down memory lane, it’s amazing how the sight of something can trigger such fond memories and emotions. Go for a walk today, get out of the house, and the office, take a break mentally and see what journey you find yourself on. Not only will this walk benefit your mind and body, but you never know what is out there waiting for you to discover! One little walk made my entire day filled with happy memories. I love anything nostalgic; I find it so good for the soul.
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