Rant & Rave
Rant & Rave
BEING a teen is tough. Being a teen-age girl in an all-girl school is twice as hard. All-girl school
alright after allI feel I've led a pretty sheltered life compared to my peers, but I never expected to be "imprisoned" in a private all-girl high school.
After having the best year of my life in the eighth grade, I was ready to carry on at a public high school. I thought I would be moving on to taller guys, more friends, older guys, more fun, more guys ... Did I mention guys?
Well, don't get the wrong impression. I'm just trying to convey the root of my disappointment, and that is, the importance of the opposite sex.
Somehow, on entering an all-girl school I felt deprived of something I thought I rightfully deserved. I'm not talking about dating millions of guys. In fact, I'm not talking about dating at all, but simply having boys around who would look at me and make me feel special.
Don't you remember the butterflies you'd get in your stomach when you heard some cutie was thinking about you? That's exactly my point! How can anyone hear those exciting rumors at an all-girl school? That is what I mean by "deprived."
I felt that being slammed into this new setting would completely disconnect me from male counterparts.
I am not boy crazy, just concerned. Some of my closest friends go to school together and it makes me wonder what I'm doing someplace else. Instead of sharing the whole "high school guy experience" with my friends, I got more books and a designated wardrobe of skirts and cardigans.
However, I also got a new head on my shoulders, my priorities straight and a perspective beyond my previous single-focus point-of-view.
No longer do I feel that a guy's compliment or presence is the highlight of the day.
A lot of my friends ask me why I've recently become so different, or why, all of a sudden, I turn down guys for dates. The truth is, I am different, and my heart doesn't have to jump at every mention of my name.
I'm not anti-male or anything, just not male-dependent. My mom said it best, "Right now you're looking for a guy to spend a long time with, but you're not going to find him if you're constantly looking."
Boy, is she right! I'm having a blast with my friends, and who knows, maybe the guy of my dreams will come tomorrow. But you know, it really doesn't matter.
Elysa Rosso is a sophomore at St. Andrew's Priory. Rant & Rave is a Tuesday Star-Bulletin feature
allowing those 12 to 22 to serve up fresh perspectives.
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