By REMY BROUSSARD
It happened during a 7th grade ELA class, during one of those days where we didn’t open our textbooks. Instead, we pushed our desks into a circle and had a class discussion. Our teacher wrote the question on the board:
“Can people actually change?”
At first, I didn’t think much of it. I already had my answer: No, not really. People are who they are. If someone lies to you once, they’ll probably lie again. If someone’s a jerk, they’ll always be a jerk. That’s just the way it goes.
So that’s what I said when it was my turn to talk. “I don’t think people change,” I told the class. “They might act differently for a while, but eventually they go back to who they really are.”
A few people nodded. It felt like the “right” answer.
Then someone spoke up — a kid who usually didn’t talk much. I didn’t know them super well, but I remembered they’d gotten into a lot of drama the year before. They raised their hand and said, “I used to get in trouble all the time. I was angry, and I said stuff I didn’t mean. But I started going to counseling. I worked on it. I’m not like that anymore.”
The room got quiet.
And that’s when I started to question what I believed. Not because someone told me to — but because I heard someone be brave enough to tell the truth about themselves.
I started thinking about myself, too. About how I used to be super shy and never spoke up, and how now I am someone who raises my hand in class. About how I used to hold grudges, but I had started learning how to let stuff go. I realized: Wait… I’ve changed, too.
I didn’t say anything else that day, but my opinion started to shift.
Now, when I hear someone say “people never change,” I think back to that day in 7th grade. I think about how easy it is to write someone off — and how hard it can be to admit you were wrong, even about yourself. I’m not saying everyone changes. But I’ve learned that some people really try. And that should count for something.
The Senior Spotlight is submitted by MHS teacher Kathleen Kelley and sponsored by White River Electric Association.