High School Daze 2 - First Impressions

Okay, so on to my other thoughts. This next one might be somewhat shorter. It starts with a girl named Megan. She and I became friends my senior year, despite the fact that she was a 'mere freshman' (here's my nose in the air...heh heh). Anyhow, she is a sweet girl, genuinely beautiful, fun, and pretty smart. There was a time I didn't think so, though. The day I met her.

My negative thoughts didn't last long, mind you, nor did they stem to anything hateful in any way! No, no, no. It was much simpler than that.

She offended me.

The very first thing she ever said to me was rude, in my opinion. Especially considering that she didn't even know me. I now attribute it to family loyalty and a high regard for her older sister, coupled with a desire to be known instantly in her new school.

But I'm getting ahead of myself. Here's the scenario:
I'm eating lunch with friends, and one of them says they have a new friend who wants to hang with us. Of course everyone is cool with this, and so off she trots. When she comes back, she's talking with a curly-haired, round-faced, kinda shy looking girl. Her name is Megan, and she is NOT shy. Everyone makes introductions all around, and she was saying something about hanging with drama people because her sister Trisha (not to be confused with Trish) was over there. So I brighten up and tell her I'm in the Advanced Acting class with her sister.

Her response? "You're not the best, you know. My sister has been acting longer than you. I'm sure she's better. Just because you're in that class doesn't mean you're the best."

To which I replied (looking very confused, I'm sure), "I never said I was the best. I just said I was in the class."

And her response..."Well, she's better than you, just so you know."

I shook my head and tried to figure out how this girl A) came to the conclusion that I THOUGHT I was the best, B) figured it was good to put me, a total stranger, in my place, and C) knew enough about me in the first place to judge how good I was or wasn't compared to her sister.

Like I said, we did become friends. Not that day, but the next. Seems that my humility was enough for her to consider me friend material...for which I'm glad, cause snobbery is never a good memory to have of someone.

Here's what has always bugged me about this encounter, though. First, you had to be hand-picked by the drama teacher in order to be in the advanced class. This class skipped the lets-teach-you-how-to-act stuff, and focused only on setting up and performing high school plays. Every day, all year. You had to have had beginning drama in order to qualify, but still...not everyone qualified. So right off the bat, you had to be good. Second, I WAS one of the great actors of the class. I learned this later from the teacher. I had asked him why I was usually in middle roles (not extra, but not lead). He had given us countless stories about quality actors not in lead roles, and he directed my thoughts to those. He said he knew he could trust me to direct focus where it needed to be when it needed to be there, as well as give good supplemental dialogue and character to a scene to make it work, and that even though my roles were never lead...I was noticed. And in a good way. Great compliment, in my opinion! I was pointedly reminded of several times when my character, played my specific way, had brought in audible sympathy, disbelief, or laughter from the audience. And third, my school drama team was one of the top three in the STATE! Another thing I learned later on. So, yeah, that makes me pretty good. Another talent from God, I'm well aware.

With all that in mind, I'm also aware that I'm not the best. I'm not even comparing myself to Trisha, either. I have no idea what my teacher's opinion of her talent was. My opinion is that she was great...really great. To be regarded highly. But this wasn't actually about her anyway. It was about little sis. Megan.

And often I've thought to myself, when I'm feeling somewhat confrontational, that I would love to go back in time and point out all of the above to Megan on the first day! If for no other reason than just to shut up the immediate snob she made herself out to be.

But, alas, that would have most definately made it impossible for any friendship between us. So even though I randomly think about that...in my heart now and forever, I'm VERY glad I said exactly what I did. Cause even though high school was 10+ years ago, and we haven't spoken to or seen each other for at least 8 or those years, we did have a good friendship back then and the memories I have of her (other than the first) are good memories.

So I guess this blog is just so I can scream it out to the world what I never said back then: I WAS ONE OF THE BEST ACTORS!!! NOT JUST IN MY SCHOOL, BUT IN THE ENTIRE STATE!!! HAND-PICKED BY A MAN WHO KNEW MORE ABOUT ACTING THAN A LOT OF PROFESSIONAL ACTORS, AND NO AMOUNT OF PETTY SNOBBERY CAN TAKE THAT AWAY!!! SO, HA!

Okay, I'm okay now.

Ciao