Walking through the halls at school, I’ve started to notice that I don’t recognize many of the faces that pass me by. It happens more and more, and the concept of it hardly makes sense to me. Of the nearly 400 students at Devine High, I know only a small portion by name, and an even smaller section personally. For the longest time I just didn’t understand how I could not know the majority of the people I attend school with; it took me a while to realize that I wasn’t making any effort at all to get to know these people, and that I couldn’t possibly be the only one guilty of this thought.

Many people set goals for themselves for the year, and here’s mine: I want to be able to connect with the people in my school, and not just the ones I’ve been in the same classes with since 6^th grade. I want to be able to walk down the halls and say hi to my peers, not just the friends I’ve had for years. That goal, I realize, begins and ends with me. I don’t believe that I have to know a person to send a smile their way in the hall, and neither do you. You see, being nice is the root of it. There’s too much negativity in today’s youthful society, and that’s where the distance between us all comes into play.

We can change that. We can lessen that distance, just slightly, by performing everyday acts of kindness for our fellow students and even teachers. I may not know that one girl in the hall, but I can help pick up her books when she drops them. You may not know the new kid who’s lost and looking for algebra class, but there’s no reason to ignore them and not help at all. By just being nice for a change, and noticing everything and everyone around you, you can help make those connections with people you never would have even known before. It’s all in the way you present yourself to others; however you do that, that’s how people will know you. And coming from someone who doesn’t know much about many people, you want to put your best foot forward. That’s what I plan to do this year, and I really hope I can get to know others who want to do the same.