New kid. It was a word I'd heard and used before in school; pointing out the awkward looking teenager sitting alone in the school cafeteria, glancing at the girl who was picked last for dodgeball, giggling at the newcomer who seemed unused to the staggering Texas heat.
And now it was my turn. I was starting everything all over again at a new school in a new environment. Except this time, I wasn't wearing jeans and a hoodie to school. And no blue eyed American teacher was going to be stumbling over my strange, alien name with a smile and an apology. I was entering a Korean high school, and it terrified me.
Dressed in a plaid blue skirt and matching blouse, I remembered to check the ribbon choking my neck before sliding open the wooden door to my new classroom. Immediately, numerous pairs of eyes widened and zoomed on me. I could feel their intense stares, checking me out from head to toe.
Attempting to make friends? Being out of place? Never. I'd met my best friend of 10 years on the first day of first grade. I'd always known the same classmates from elementary school to high school. My family had stayed in the same neighborhood for 10 years. I had never been the new kid.
Cheeks flaming with humiliation and fighting a burning desire to burst into tears, I glanced at the closest girl and smiled tentatively. To my dismay, she avoided my eyes and looked down at her phone. "Umm, this is classroom 2-1?" I asked in a faint voice. There was a general ripple of murmuring and nodding amongst the girls. They were glancing at each other, as if silently wondering who was going to be brave enough to talk to the new girl who was rumored to speak very little Korean. I looked around helplessly. Where was I supposed to sit? And where was the teacher? Did they hate me already? The Korean classroom seemed so much more different than it had been in the dramas I'd watched.
Finally, someone got up and pointed to my designated seat, and I nodded quickly, forgetting to say thank you. I sank down in the cold wooden chair. "Your seat partner isn't here yet. She's always late," a girl sitting in front of me said. Then, she promptly pulled a blanket over her head and fell asleep. After that, my presence seemed forgotten as the students talked among themselves, bursting into laughter and spreading thick ruby red lip tints on their lips. I sat feeling hopelessly lost, wondering what to do. "Hey. Are you from America?" A girl across the aisle asked with a curious look. I nodded profusely and answered, "Yes, I am." A shy look crossed her face and she pulled back and said no more.
After what seemed a lifetime, the homeroom teacher came into the classroom. Spotting me, she chided, "You should have come to my office. I was going to introduce you to the class." With an encouraging smile, she beckoned me up to the front. "Come and introduce yourself to your fellow classmates."
After my hasty and fumbled introduction, morning announcements were made. Class officially began. I was exhausted and ready to run home. I glanced at the clock. 8:20. I had been in class for only 20 minutes.
Saturday, September 19, 2015
Yeo Eun Ki/Week 3 assignment/Tuesday 1pm
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Hi! I am ga young lee I had a similar experience too so I got in to your essay deeply. Your expression is really specified and I think that makes your writing really interesting. The short sentence 'New kid' catched my eye. I also like your last sentence of story. I want to know what happened at the rest of the day!!
ReplyDeleteHi ^^ I had fun reading your essay. Your essay describes the situation in detail so well which made me feel like being a new student in class and think back of my high school classroom. Especially, your fleeting thoughts and the atmosphere of Korean high school were described very delicately. If you are planning to revise your writing, I suggest changing the beginning of your essay more interestingly because I think your main story is much more fun than I predicted as I read the first few sentences. I think the topic of your essay is attractive! See you next class^^
ReplyDelete- written by Sieun Kim
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteHello I am ChangHwan Lee. I had a blast reading your story. It really reminded me of my first experience of going to a Korean highschool. Partly because you described the manner of your classmates very realistically. and I want to point out how much i liked your ending. It just made me think of your awkward moment where you do not know anyone in school.
ReplyDeleteNew kid. It was a word I'd heard and used before in school; pointing out the awkward looking teenager sitting alone in the school cafeteria, glancing at the girl who was picked last for dodgeball, giggling at the newcomer who seemed unused to the staggering Texas heat.
ReplyDeleteAnd now it was my turn. I was starting everything all over again at a new school in a new environment. Except this time, I wasn't wearing jeans and a hoodie to school. And no blue eyed American teacher was going to be stumbling over my strange, alien name with a smile and an apology. I was entering a Korean high school, and it terrified me.
Dressed in a plaid blue skirt and matching blouse, I remembered to straighten the ribbon choking my neck before sliding open the wooden door to my new classroom. Immediately, a dozen pair of eyes widened and zoomed in on me. I could feel their intense stares, checking me out from head to toe.
Attempting to make friends? Being out of place? Never. I'd met my best friend of 10 years on the first day of first grade. I'd known my classmates from elementary school to high school. My family had stayed in the same neighborhood for 10 years. I had never been the new kid.
Cheeks flaming with humiliation and fighting a burning desire to burst into tears, I glanced at the closest girl and smiled tentatively. To my dismay, she avoided my eyes and looked down at her phone. "Umm, this is classroom 2-1?" I asked in a faint voice. There was a general ripple of murmuring and nodding amongst the girls. They were glancing at each other, as if silently wondering who was going to be brave enough to talk to the new girl, who was rumored to speak very little Korean.
I looked around helplessly. Where was I supposed to sit? And where was the teacher? Did they hate me already? The Korean classroom seemed so much more different than it had been in the dramas I'd watched.
Finally, someone got up and pointed to my designated seat, and I nodded quickly, forgetting to say thank you. I sank down in the cold wooden chair. "Your seat partner isn't here yet. She's always late," a girl sitting in front of me said. Then, she promptly pulled a blanket over her head and fell asleep.
After that, my presence seemed forgotten. My classmates talked among themselves, bursting into laughter and spreading thick ruby red lip tints on their lips. I sat feeling lost, wondering what to do. My vision momentarily blurred as I thought of my friends back in America. I missed my high school. It had been familiar. Safe. "Hey. Are you from America?" A girl across the aisle asked with a curious look. I pulled out of my self-pity and nodded profusely, "Yes, I am." A shy look crossed her face and she pulled back and said no more.
After what seemed a hundred years, my homeroom teacher came into the classroom. Spotting me, she chided, "You should have come to my office. I was going to introduce you to the class." There was no way I was going to tell her I had no idea where her office was. But I offered an embarrassed smile as 41 pairs of eyes swiveled to stare at me again. With a beam, she beckoned me up to the front. "Come and introduce yourself to your fellow classmates."
ReplyDeleteThe walk to the front of the classroom felt like a death sentence. “My name is Ki Yeo Eun…”
I walked back to my desk after my making a hasty and fumbled introduction. Just then, a short melody played through the speakers, signaling that class was starting. Around me, textbooks were emerging from backpacks. Pencil cases were being unzipped. I felt like I’d spent my entire life sitting in this classroom. I was exhausted and ready to run home. But when I glanced at the clock, it was 8:20. I had been in class for only 20 minutes.
Being a new kid is never easy. I still remember reaching that conclusion sitting in my desk on that first day. All the times I’d ignored the tentative looks from an unfamiliar face or shied away from saying hello to someone sitting alone came back to me with regret. I had always thought myself an empathetic person but I soon realized how little I knew about the loneliness one feels in an unfamiliar environment. Starting over wasn’t simple. Making new friends was challenging at times. But it was all part of the growing pains of slowly becoming an adult.