Everyone I came across that first day was kind and helpful. Sitting in homeroom with a group of kids I had never seen before may have been scary, but once we got talking, all of the fear and worry I had been carrying around on my shoulders was gone. At that table I met two of my future friends, Grace and Grace. We had all been so nervous that once we introduced ourselves and realized this coincidence, we all started laughing hysterically. The rest of that day, I kept meeting new friends with every small step I took. Lunch, although frightening, was one of the best periods of the day. There, I was befriended by Cam, Nick, and Amanda, who could not have been more welcoming. Although in lunch I had one of the best experiences of my forty glorious weeks in sixth grade, nothing compared to ninth period band. Sitting in that seat should have been a relief, but the anxiety still jolting through my gut and rushing through my veins was not going to let that happen. Surrounded by 61 other seventh and eighth graders, I barely recognized the other two sixth graders who were sitting as tiny and