I’m really starting to wonder this. I’ll accept pretty much anybody, regardless of social cast. I don’t even give it a second thought. I don’t really belong to a specific group, but I just hang with open-minded, interesting people who accept me, and people hate me for it. I suppose that most of my friends are kind of just ‘normal,’ perhaps slightly ‘nerdy,’ if anything. Just your typical kids, I’d say. And people say I’m a ‘freak.’ Now, somehow, I got the ‘emo’ label. I don’t see it as a bad thing, you are who you are, but I don’t consider myself emo. I just see myself as pretty normal. And the thing is that people will be talking about me slitting my wrists and stuff, which I do not do. And I’m not some poser. I’m just me, and people classify automatically.
There is a lot said about me, but I’m strong about it. I just suck it up, and sometimes I’ll talk back if it’s to my face, but I’m always the bigger man and never start a fight. I think it’s because I don’t adhere to a clique. I’m in a lot of advanced classes, and I’d say I’m smart, and most of the students at my intelligence level disapprove of me. Most of them are ‘preps’ or ‘nerds,’ and they assume I’m stupid – even though I answer more questions in class, and more correctly than the majority of them.
I wear a lot of band shirts, and I listen to whatever I want. I’m a huge music fan, especially of rock. I’m not big into rap, but I like Eminem. And when people find this out, they’re like, "Oh, what, are you ghetto now?" What the hell? I just happen to like the music. And I’m into all kinds of rock, as far back as the ’70s and ’80s. I wear a black shirt most days, just with blue jeans. Occasionally black, but I just like the color, and that’s how I feel comfortable. And my jeans aren’t extremely tight, they just fit comfortably. And I tend to wear Vans, which really sets people off. As I said, I like all sorts of rock music, and when I wear my MCR (My Chemical Romance) shirt to school, that really gets people talking. And I sometimes wear shirts with skulls, but that’s just what I like… Big deal. I have no piercings or anything, and my hair is its natural, non-dyed color. When I’m in my p.e. uniform, people can’t distinguish me from any other normal kid.
To top it off, I play sports, including football and wrestling. The teams are discriminant against me for playing, and people who aren’t even on the football or wrestling team say I have no business playing. And I know my facts, especially when it comes to football. And not just one team. I know history and the current players on all NFL teams. So-called fans at my school tend to know less than I do, but just because of social casts, they assume I don’t know anything. I wear jerseys once in awhile, with jeans and white tennis shoes (so I obviously look very ‘normal’), and people ask me what the deal is. Really, can’t I be a football fan??? Is the idea too much? What ignorance. My friends accept me regardless of what people say, but people always talk and taunt me, telling me to slit my wrists and all sorts of pleasant things. My ex-girlfriend (who remains a great friend) knows I’m ‘normal,’ and is always there for me to talk to. She says it doesn’t matter what people think, and she goes through similar issues. But it’s so annoying, and the ignorance is just appalling. And I’m not some unpleasant kid who always whines about life. If people give me a chance, I have perfectly normal conversations on music, sports, you name it.
But why do people just have to label everyone? Why can’t we just be normal people? Why do you have to adhere to some specific label, or else you’ll be ridiculed? And even if you are gothic or emo, what’s so bad about that? It doesn’t mean you’re some devil-worshipping, wrist-slitting, whiny idiot… I find ‘goths’ and ‘emos’ to be very accepting and approachable, perhaps because of what they face. So if that’s how you want to label me, then fine… But why?
