And the Winner Is…

Wow can you believe it’s October already?? I love the fall weather! And October means Homecoming season. (Although when I do get a chance to make it home this month, I don’t think I’ll be stopping by the school for Homecoming…that might a bit creeper-ish, making the whole ‘homecoming’ thing perhaps sort of misnamed)

But anyways, homecoming: if you’re in high school, you know what I’m talking about – one of these weeks (if not already) you’ll be parading around the school in crazy get-ups, for Twin Day, Geek Day, Greek Day, to  Mis-match Day, Opposite Day, Spirit Dayor whatever other zaney day is instituted. It’s as if during that week, most rules don’t apply – or at least they’re way more lenient. And then there’s the homecoming games, and of course, the democratic voting of and crowning of the coveted Homecoming King and Queen, themselves.

No I'm not in that Picture...

I never did get bestowed with such a crown. Sad. Tear. But I think I’m over it now.

And if you’re in middle school, chances are, you’ve heard of this week, or caught a glimpse of this week, and perhaps, even, you can’t wait to join the fun! Of course, I know for some, that whole school spirit thing just isn’t their cup o tea, but it’s a fun time nevertheless.

I know when I was in middle school, we actually did have homecoming week, but we couldn’t partake in the homecoming games (including for some schools, the infamous Powderpuff Football Game) play in the actual homecoming football game, or be crowned homecoming king or queen. Cause that’s for high schoolers. I remember me and my friends looking forward to high school and all the real fun that was waiting for us there – we always wished we were high schoolers. But maybe me the most, though – I always wanted to be in the next step of my life.

For example: When I was in 6^th grade, I couldn’t figure out how hard I really needed to try in school, how much my grades really mattered, because it was just so long until college – I couldn’t even imagine being old enough to go to college. And I loved basketball, and although in 7^th and 8^th grades I played Jr. High Basketball, I just could not wait to play varsity basketball. As if playing basketball in Jr. High was just a waiting period before I could actually play basketball. (But guess who gets picked to be on the Varsity team as freshmen – of course not me unfortunately… the freshmen who get to be on the varisty team are the kids who were the best players they could be in middle school and Jr. High, those who paid the price in time and practice to be good…see where I’m going?…)

No caption necessary - I just really like basketball...

But see, this is what I’ve learned: there’s a funny balance between looking forward to stuff in the future, and living right now. While you need to think about how you’re gonna be in high school, and even after that, you still need to live your absolute best, today. And the way you live today will help shape how you’ll be in high school, and how you’ll be after high school. After 6^th grade, I ended up figuring that it couldn’t hurt to try hard in my classes now. I thought maybe I’d just go for a good track record (with grades – I was for sure not a runner!) in middle school, and then maybe high school would be easier. (Well, it was definitely not easier, but it was easier to be a good student and actually try…)

Now why the heck am I telling you all this?? Because I’m crazy? Well, maybe a little…

But actually, besides that, I’m telling you because I know from experience that every step of life counts. If you’re in middle school, be the best middle school student you possibly can be. That means, go to class. Pay attention. Study when you have to. Do your homework and turn it in on time. Why? Because doing those things  makes you a good student, and good middle school students will find it easier to be good high school students. They’ll find it easier to get scholarships for college. And they’ll find it easier to do well in college. And if you’re in high school, it’s not too late to be a good student. Just be a good student: go to class, on time. Do your homework.

Middle Schoolers: what you do now affects the type of student you’ll be in high school and in college. And here’s the kicker: for some of you, the grades you get in some of your classes during your 8th grade year (possibly Spanish, Pre-Algebra, Health, Phys.Ed) will show up on you high school transcript. And the scores on that transcript stick with you for the rest of your life.

So. If you think education might be valuable, and you think you might need to invest in it to be able to pay the rent after you graduate, that’s what you need to do now: you need to be the best student you can be right now. It’s that simple, and it’s never too late.

Noble Crashes the Homecoming Par-tay

So where’s Noble this week? Well, he didn’t make real far outside of Columbus. While he was supposed to be finding himself on a college campus, I found him crashing a homecoming crowning. Uh…didn’t know he was into that stuff, but whatever…