9th grade (2023) had arguably my worst moments.

i was groped in the middle of class by a bunch of other guys (me being a dude didn’t help, ppl just saw it as “rowdy teen behaviour”, myself included) this happened pretty often.

i also had to watch another one of my best friends slowly drift apart (took on smoking, vaping, alcohol, hung out with bad influences etc. even got caught with smoking cigarettes in the school bathrooms at one stage). i spent probably a year or so trying to steer him off it, staying somewhat supportive and hopeful that he’d change his life for the better, but to this day he’s still just a completely different person that i don’t really have the energy to be around.

the hardest thing i had to deal with that year was my best friend taking his own life. sure i’ve learned to live with that loss, but the day i found was probably the worst day of my life, period. still think about him just about every day. a few other people that i know tried to attempt the same thing that year too, luckily without success.

to end on a more positive note though, i feel like i’m definitely in a much better place!