Good evening everyone, my name is David Bent and I would like reminisce with you about the class of 2001’s middle school journey. Not too long ago, well about seven years to be exact, this group of seniors made a huge transition from the closed walls of various elementary schools to the huge building of opportunites, which literally had no walls, the middle school. The summer before we entered this huge abyss of opportunities, excitment breezed through the air. This was a chance to finally meet those “other people” who we had always heard about, but never knew who they really were.
And of course, we also got to meet those people we heard lots of bad things about and never wanted to meet, but in the end we all survived and here It all started with the sixth grade. Why did the teachers expect us to master the ways of elementary just to start all over again? To this day I don’t know why, but those days were great. We had our own bathrooms, yeah, as sixth graders, passing the eighth graders was scary enough. We also had our own lunch period, which allowed us to get better aquainted with our new friends and talk about how mad our mothers would be if hey knew we were eating french fries for lunch everyday.
Best of all, we could attend the school dances, which always brought up the conversation of who was going and who wasn’t. And every Friday we got to participate in the Fun Friday activities. The first year was great, but that was only the start of many better ones. Seventh grade brought more decisions, but also lots of fun. Now that you knew everyone, it was tough to decide who you wanted to be your next girlfriend or boyfriend. Whether or not you wanted to try out for the volleyball or basketball team was another ifficult decision.
We learned how to master the art of gossip and some of us even experienced our first kiss at the boy/girl party your parents finally let you go to. Some of us also found that true best friend who we still share those deepest, darkest secrets with today. A few people that were wallflowers at the dances in sixth grade soon learned that they could be the center of attention on the middle of the dance floor, grabbing all the girls hearts. Well, this year went too quickly and there we were again, already to the summer before we ruled the school once more.
Lots of memories were created that summer, for it was our last as middle schoolers. That was by far the best year. We all attended the, still popular, Friday night football games, dreaming of the day we would be out on Armstrong field, taking yet, another wolverine conference title. Our fascination with the middle school was wearing down and so was the time we had left in that place, so full of memories. During the last few days of those middle school days it finally registered in our minds what our parents meant when they told us to be a kid while we still had the chance.