Something that I realized today is that my high school wasn't as "clique-y" as I used to think, at least not compared to many other high schools. There were athletes, skaters, Mormons, "skids", and everybody else, but there was a lot of intermingling.
Some personal experiences or thoughts that came to me this week are in relation to opportunity costs or trade-offs. It made me think of a family I know, the dad has a good job and he works really hard, so he makes a decent living. They own a boat, lake-front property, and a nice car. But what good are these things if you're never away from the office long enough to enjoy them?
When I was in grade 4 I had a classmate that everybody (including me) made fun of. We called him an alien and nobody wanted to be his partner I guess because his family didn't have very much money, I don't really know all of the reasons why we chose to pick on him, but we did. I remember being at a BBQ at my best friend's house at the beginning of the summer holidays and our moms took us aside and told us that this classmate of ours had died in an accident. He and his little sister were at the playground and he had a leash and collar around his neck and he ended up hanging himself. Therefore I never had the chance to grow up and apologize to this boy. I did write a poem about it in grade 7 though. I just feel so terrible that I contributed to the teasing and put-downs directed at this boy, who I recall was actually a very nice kid. I think this experience has helped shape the way I view people around me in relation to their "social class".
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