As a girl going into the seventh grade, I already had a lot on my plate (or at least what a seventh grader considers to be a lot). Going to school and seeing all of my peers with their close knit families was excruciating—I was extremely jealous. While they were able to focus on the latest gossip and tedious spelling homework, I was focusing on how to avoid the drama spurring from my parents. I craved so badly to be what I considered a normal seventh grader.
My grades began to slip, friendships met dead ends, and tears fell for a heart broken seventh grade girl; however, this could not last long, it just took me a little bit of time to figure that out. By letting go of my studies and friendships, I was depriving myself of any and all possibilities to better my life. I knew what I needed to do: stop focusing on any temporary drama in my life, and begin building the future I deserve. I started hitting the books again, I made up with the friends I'd lost, and I pushed myself to be better and stronger than I was the day