Weave the Web
Recording Family Legends for Generations to Come
Fitting In
by Nicholas Ware
November 2017
The following was written by Nick for his 8th grade Communication Arts class in Springfield, New Jersey
The room was dead silent, unusual for the apartment, as my parents prepared to tell us the news. We had just finished dinner and we were about to go to our rooms when my mom told us to stay because she and my dad had something important to tell us. There were mixed emotions on everyone’s minds when my mom told us we were moving from the bustling and busy city of São Paulo, to the quiet suburbs of New Jersey. All my brothers and I were excited but sad at the same time and we wanted to tell our friends right away. That’s when I started to wonder how I would fit in and if I would make friends.
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Nick's School Picture at Pueri Domus in Sao Paulo
The next day we went to school and told all our friends, who were also not very happy we were leaving.
“What do you mean you are leaving? Why?” asked my friends with a sad tone.
“Well, it’s not my fault my dad has to move there for work,” I answered.
“That’s a shame. Stay here!” My friends begged.
“I wish I could,” I told them in order to calm them down.
“Let’s have a goodbye party on the last day of school!” My friends told me.
“Definitely,” I answered them.​
Nick off to school with his brothers, Matthew and Timothy
I didn’t know how I felt about the news, I had lived in the same apartment, in the same city, went to the same school all my life, so I didn’t know what to expect as the day of our flight got closer.
My brothers, my mom, and I said goodbye to the rest of my family and we were all sad to be leaving them. After the 12-hour flight, we had arrived in New York. I felt excited and eager as we entered our dad’s car. My father had come to the United States earlier to get things ready. We passed through Manhattan and I remember being amazed at all the skyscrapers I saw, and all the lights. We then reached the new house, coming from a big city it was surprising to me how everything was so dark compared to where I used to live. I went to sleep straight after we arrived as it was really late and I was tired.
The next day our dad took my brothers and me to explore the area, I was amazed at how different everything was from Brazil. I tried not to speak as much as possible because I was worried people would notice that I had an accent and wasn’t from there, now that I look back at it I don’t know why I was so worried people would notice it.
The summer vacation was lots of fun, my dad took the family on all kinds of adventures, hiking, going to New York City, and my brothers and I explored the neighborhood on our bikes. We visited family in Connecticut and Manhattan. Throughout the summer I felt nervous and anxious about the first day of school.
“Everyone already knows each other, nobody is going to want to talk to me,” I repeatedly thought as the first day of school got closer and closer.
Before school started I went to orientation day which helped me understand the school and meet my teachers, know the school and how everything worked.​
The first day of school arrived sooner than I was expecting, to be honest. And I was more nervous than I had ever in my whole life, I wanted to go home as soon as my mom dropped me off. I was nervous and filled with anxiety. When school started I wasn’t sure where to go or what to do, I listened to everyone saying hi to their friends that they hadn’t seen since school ended, and talking about their summers. The first couple of periods I pretty much just followed people I knew were in my grade. I had already talked to some kids at that point, and they helped me understand how everything worked. Then the classes started, I wasn’t experienced with having to move from class to class, because we didn’t do that in my old school. All the teachers were really nice and the kids weren’t mean or anything, but my anxiety made it hard to talk to people because everyone already knew each other.
Lunchtime came around and I went to sit with the kid that was assigned as my buddy in homeroom to help me understand how everything worked, but the table was full so I went somewhere else, two other boys who were sitting at that table came to have lunch with me and that just made my day because it meant I wouldn’t be sitting alone for lunch. They became good friends of mine, and I felt like I was starting to fit into this different school. ​
Nick in New Jersey!
Where are you from?” they and others kids in my classes asked.
I always answered with the same words, “I moved here from Brazil.”
And people always answered with “cool,” or “wow,” or something along those lines.
When I got home after what felt like a super long day. My parents asked if I had made friends and if I liked it, I answered truthfully saying that I made a few friends but I was still somewhat struggling to fit in, since I was new and all.
The next day was pretty much the same, I talked to the people I had become friends with the previous day and started to talk to people in my classes more, and met new people. The next few days and weeks were like that as well. Although I was still struggling to try and talk to people, I had established myself in a group of friends and I liked it. Being an introvert, I was okay with not having a lot of friends, because that way I wouldn’t stand out.
Throughout the school year I tried and tried not to stand out, and that was working out perfectly for me, I had already made friends and I was starting to overcome my fear of raising my hand to answer a question and being wrong and made fun of, which deep down I knew wouldn’t happen.
The first school year in this new life wasn’t as bad as I expected it to be. I managed to fit in with the people in my mew school, and I made a few friends. This experienced showed me that nothing is as bad as your mind makes it, and that change isn’t all that terrifying.
