Life as a Drifter
December 6, 2004
I found today’s class presentation on Social Groups in High School to be quite interesting. As someone who came from a small town, many people are quick to assume that there were many cliques in my school, and that naturally, I had to fit in somewhere. However, I was always the girl bouncing from social group to social group. This was largely due to the fact that I had trouble making close friends.
I guess you could say I had an issue with trusting people (especially in my teen years) because I was always the subject of a “few good laughs” as many would say. My physical disability made me an easy target. While most people would say having no close friends in your teen years would be difficult, I turned this unfortunate situation into something very positive.
Because I had no close ties to any particular social group, I became someone people could talk to about their problems. Soon, I acquired a reputation for being a good listener and offering sound advice. I guess you could give me the unofficial title of guidance counselor/therapist. Depending on the day, people would see me in the school cafeteria talking to the popular girls, the nerds, the jocks, the drama/band geeks, the artists, the cowboys, or even the skids. I think people from all different cliques were drawn to me because I passed no judgment on them, and treated them like human beings regardless of the circulating so-called “popular opinion”(a.k.a. gossip).
The variety of people that dropped into my social circle at one point or another, often faded out just as quickly as they burst in. I seldom got acknowledgements of gratitude, but I felt good about what I was doing. It wasn’t until I was surprised with the high school citizenship award in grade twelve that I realized the impact that I was having on the entire student body.
The provincial government presents this high school citizenship award to a grade twelve student who makes incredible contributions to their student body as a whole and to the community at large. There are only four recipients per year, so this is quite a prestigious honor to be chosen among the applicants.
Ever since high school graduation, I’ve crossed paths with many former classmates who all seem to ask the same question: “Weren’t you lonely back in junior high and high school?” My response is of course no.
I was too busy with extra-curricular activities. I attended every single basketball, volleyball, football and hockey game under the sun, was on school council for two years, volunteered on the yearbook and graduation committees, was a participant on the school reach team, was the volunteer Sunday school teacher at the local church and still managed to maintain my reputation as the most popular babysitter around. I had no time to be bored or lonely. When I wasn’t doing extra-curricular activities, there was always homework to be done, as my parents were always insistent on bringing home good grades. Plus, I had a part-time job in high school.
Whenever I needed someone to talk to myself, there were many adults who were willing to lend an ear. To teachers, parents, and grandparents alike, I was an inspiration, and they often said they would do anything for me. Plus, I was lucky enough to have immense family support.
While most people would be very bitter about the kind of school experience I had, I think things worked out for the best. Being a so-called drifter during my junior high and high school years I had no distinct ties with one social group or another. As such, I will be able to gain favor with all the students I teach on some level, and never have to worry about favoritism. This is because I see the beauty/potential in everyone. I know that sounds corny, but I don’t know any other way to describe my unique perception of the world around me.
I found today’s class presentation on Social Groups in High School to be quite interesting. As someone who came from a small town, many people are quick to assume that there were many cliques in my school, and that naturally, I had to fit in somewhere. However, I was always the girl bouncing from social group to social group. This was largely due to the fact that I had trouble making close friends.
I guess you could say I had an issue with trusting people (especially in my teen years) because I was always the subject of a “few good laughs” as many would say. My physical disability made me an easy target. While most people would say having no close friends in your teen years would be difficult, I turned this unfortunate situation into something very positive.
Because I had no close ties to any particular social group, I became someone people could talk to about their problems. Soon, I acquired a reputation for being a good listener and offering sound advice. I guess you could give me the unofficial title of guidance counselor/therapist. Depending on the day, people would see me in the school cafeteria talking to the popular girls, the nerds, the jocks, the drama/band geeks, the artists, the cowboys, or even the skids. I think people from all different cliques were drawn to me because I passed no judgment on them, and treated them like human beings regardless of the circulating so-called “popular opinion”(a.k.a. gossip).
The variety of people that dropped into my social circle at one point or another, often faded out just as quickly as they burst in. I seldom got acknowledgements of gratitude, but I felt good about what I was doing. It wasn’t until I was surprised with the high school citizenship award in grade twelve that I realized the impact that I was having on the entire student body.
The provincial government presents this high school citizenship award to a grade twelve student who makes incredible contributions to their student body as a whole and to the community at large. There are only four recipients per year, so this is quite a prestigious honor to be chosen among the applicants.
Ever since high school graduation, I’ve crossed paths with many former classmates who all seem to ask the same question: “Weren’t you lonely back in junior high and high school?” My response is of course no.
I was too busy with extra-curricular activities. I attended every single basketball, volleyball, football and hockey game under the sun, was on school council for two years, volunteered on the yearbook and graduation committees, was a participant on the school reach team, was the volunteer Sunday school teacher at the local church and still managed to maintain my reputation as the most popular babysitter around. I had no time to be bored or lonely. When I wasn’t doing extra-curricular activities, there was always homework to be done, as my parents were always insistent on bringing home good grades. Plus, I had a part-time job in high school.
Whenever I needed someone to talk to myself, there were many adults who were willing to lend an ear. To teachers, parents, and grandparents alike, I was an inspiration, and they often said they would do anything for me. Plus, I was lucky enough to have immense family support.
While most people would be very bitter about the kind of school experience I had, I think things worked out for the best. Being a so-called drifter during my junior high and high school years I had no distinct ties with one social group or another. As such, I will be able to gain favor with all the students I teach on some level, and never have to worry about favoritism. This is because I see the beauty/potential in everyone. I know that sounds corny, but I don’t know any other way to describe my unique perception of the world around me.
posted by Chantelle @ 1:22 PM
1 Comments:
At December 19, 2004 9:38 PM,
Robert said…
If you're looking for a more sociological sounding label than "drifter" you could describe yourself as a "free floating intellectual" -- Mannhiem argued that intellectuals came in a couple of flavors -- "organic" intellectuals were people based solidly in their class (by extension here, social group) and became the ideological mouthpieces for that class/ group. The free floating intellectual was someone who had become detached from their class of origin and rose up and down the scale as their family fortunes or whatever changed, and so were able to get a uniquely distant perspective that made them ideal to observe and analyze all classes. So your 'drifter' experience makes you ideal candidate as future sociologist, guidence councilor, or , hey, teacher!
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