“Alright class, I’m going to start counting down from five. When I reach one, we should all be silent, okay?”

“5”

“4”

“3”

“2”

“1”

“Thank—”

“BLAST OFF!!”

And that’s how I got my first time-out in school. Hey, in my defense though, I was just a free-spirited first-grader who was excited to finally be a “big kid” and start elementary school. At the time, I remember being on the verge of tears for getting a time-out within the first quarter of school and upsetting the teacher; in fact, I’m pretty sure I cried to my mom when I got home.

To say the least, I took the punishment pretty seriously, and in the days afterwards, I was on my best behavior — raising my hand, using “inside” voices, all that good stuff. Unfortunately, I got two more time-outs during the remainder of my first grade year.

Obviously, I’ve grown up since then. I don’t shout random things in class, nor do I cry over little punishments. I’m no longer the carefree first-grader I once was; I have become a stressed senior (oh, college applications). It’s safe to say that I have matured exponentially since then, in both knowledge and skill (I can cook dishes other than cup noodles!).

As 2015 begins, I can only say that I look forward to the rest of year, to finishing first semester, to being 18 (an official adult), and finally to graduating and heading off to college.

Adieu,

Michelle Bau