My feelings the previous day:

The day before I went to school, I felt extremely anxious. Would I fit in? Would I make any friends? As I slept, I was both comforted and troubled by these thoughts. Maybe I would make some friends. Maybe I would fit in.

The journey to school:

My journey to the Madhapur campus always started after my sister got on the school bus to go to the Tellapur campus, as she was in 8th grade at the time and I was in 1st grade. Then, I would get on a tuk-tuk with my mother. Towards the end of the journey, I didn't have to think about these because we encountered a particularly stinky road on the way to school. The good part of that was that I forgot about the troubling thoughts from the previous night.

The first day of school:

The tuk-tuk pulled out of the street and parked right beside the school. My mother bid me goodbye and told me to have fun. As I went inside the school, I saw a school bus parked outside. About a dozen kids rushed out. Every other kid knew the class, the classroom, and the time they had to be there...except for me. Just like that, there were butterflies in my stomach again. Every class that day, I was more anxious than the one before. I still felt like the new kid. I was nervous the entire day.

The memorable moment:

As the day came to an end, students who waited for their parents to pick them up, like me,  sat in the school library and read, while others got on the school bus. I had always loved reading, and as I sat down amongst the rows of people, I felt a wave of calm come over me, as I entered a different world. I saw my mother waiting at the door. I took my bag and rushed to join her. School was nice. School was exciting. School was fun. School was great!

As I got into the tuk-tuk with my mother, my mind was filled with thoughts. Not troubling thoughts, like yesterday, but thoughts that comforted me, thoughts that excited me, thoughts that calmed me. I loved school... and I could not wait to go back again.