By: Vivian Watkins and Ada Doepke

What does it mean to grow up? Growing up can be really tough, so we asked several middle schoolers how they felt about growing out of their childhood. We received very thoughtful and interesting feedback, so we thought we would share the responses.

What makes you feel nostalgic? Whether it is food, smells, or a toy, there will always be something that comforts you and brings you back to your childhood. According to our survey, the majority of people who responded said that nostalgic foods to them were mac n’ cheese, cookies, pasta and homemade meals made by important people in their life.

The most popular response to the question, “What is the worst thing about growing up?” was gaining more responsibility. As a kid, life is full of fun and carefree activities. Now, we have more responsibilities such as homework, sports, and maintaining friendships.  “I miss when I had no responsibilities, and I could just do whatever I want,” Jacob Dant (8th grader) said. 

 When you begin to grow up, you definitely have more duties to complete and it can be really tough. As a child, life was really easy and fun and full of playing with your friends. You didn’t have important responsibilities and could just relax. Eli Kampel is an 8th grade student who has been going to this school for many years. We talked about his life when he was younger, and he said, “I had a lot of good friends when I was younger.” As Eli grew up, his childhood friends who he used to play with moved away. It is hard to lose something that has been with you for a while but it is all part of growing up. Many middle schoolers can relate to the feeling of losing friends which can be tough.

After learning about other people’s childhood, we wanted to share some stories about ours. 

Some of my favorite memories growing up were with my cousins, specifically when we went to the Lake house which is in South Carolina. As a kid I really looked up to my cousins, I thought they were so cool. I feel like a lot of people could relate to having a role model as a kid. My cousins live in Columbus, which is sort of a long drive so the feeling of getting to hang out with them for a week at the Lake House was really exciting. I liked to go tubing and tell my uncle to go super fast, I liked to do tricks off the boat dock and make my grandma rate my tricks. I loved paddle boarding with my cousins. As a kid I used to sit on the back of the paddle board while my cousins stood next to me paddling us to this peninsula. We liked to swim too. We would take turns paddling and occasionally stopping for cool rocks I spotted on the bottom of the lake, but now that I have gotten older I am the one paddling and my younger cousins sit at the back. For most people growing up means losing friendships you used to have as a kid, but for me as I got older I became closer with my cousins, just learning to appreciate the fun memories I have with them. 

• Vivian Watkins

Something that I remember most about my childhood was the comforting smell of my grandma’s home. Whenever I walked in, I immediately felt warm and safe. My grandma was a compassionate person who cared a lot for her family. She made new friends everywhere she went, and would talk and listen to them every chance she got. Every year my family goes to Michigan. It was one of my Grandma’s favorite places, and we would go to a cherry farm nearby our cottage. One time we drove by this cherry grove and my grandma stepped out of the car to pluck some cherries. The farm was not open but she said that she was “friends” with the owner so it was fine. We got out of the car and picked cherries for an hour or so, and eventually the owner 

came out. He was in fact NOT friends with my grandma, but that would soon change! She talked to him for less than 20 minutes and they were now friends. It was really embarrassing then, but now that I think about it we probably would’ve gotten in trouble if she didn’t do that. Her personality was very bubbly and she had some sort of aura to her that I think drew people in, which is why she was so well known. 

– Ada Doepke