Dear Candice,

As you sit down to eat lunch by yourself again today, I want you to know that you’re not actually alone.

When I was in 7^th grade, I felt like an outcast too. For the first several weeks of school, I sat at a lunch table surrounded only by the frizzy hair shielding my flushed, embarrassed cheeks. I wore off-brand jeans and dorky t-shirts, and I participated in all the “geeky” activities. Apparently no one wanted to sit with the shy, weird girl.

One day, I scoured my fourth period science class for a friendly face, and I finally asked a girl named Joanna if I could sit with her at lunch. Shockingly, she said yes, and I started eating at her table every day. By the end of the year, I was still wearing similar clothes and fixing my hair in the same way, but I was much more confident, and I had a few friends.

I want you to know that life gets better. There are peaks and valleys, and middle school is certainly a low point for most of us.

Over the next few years, you will learn that you don’t need to change yourself to make friends. You’ll grow into who you are, and you will find friends who are equally weird, wonderful, smart and fun.

You won’t eat lunch alone forever. In fact, you don’t have to sit by yourself again, if you don’t want to. Look up. Smile. Watch for a new friend in class.You might just surprise yourself with how many people would love to have you sit at their table tomorrow.

You are not as alone as you feel right now.

All my love,

-Ms. Jackson