Teachers Tell Students to Embrace Their Unique
At the Middle School Meeting on Friday, December 6, Middle School Librarian Bethany Kavanaugh and Middle School English Teacher Dr. Nick Miller shared poems they wrote about that week’s theme: UNIQUE. The students really enjoyed these two very creative and, well, unique takes on being one’s self. We hope you do, too.
Needed Words
By Bethany Kavanaugh
I sit down with myself
in a quiet, dimly lit room.
I stare into my own
12-year-old eyes,
and have a hard conversation.
I feel the words rising up my throat
clawing their way out of my heart
because 12-year-old me needed
to hear the things no one ever told me.
There are many things you are,
and there are many things that are tough.
You are exactly who you need to be,
And you are more than enough.
You’re not the freckles on your face,
Or the ruddy color of your curly hair.
You’re not the clothes on your body
Or the off-brand shoes that you wear.
You’re not the C on that math test
You’re not the burden of your parents’ fight,
You’re not that free throw shot you missed,
or the 3rd strike to end the game that night.
You’re not the bad decision you regret,
or the disappointment on anyone’s face.
You’re not the friends who aren’t friends at all,
or the ones who drag you down to a worse place.
However, you are so many things,
you’re so important the way you are.
You are the books that you read,
and the sound of your laughter carrying far.
You’re the kindness that you show,
and the forgiveness you can give.
You are the imagination you grow and exercise,
and every beautiful color of the world in which you live.
You are the friends you choose who support you,
and the way you build each other as a team.
You are the fantastic drawings that you sketch,
and the amazing things you get to dream.
You are the music that you listen to
and the words that you choose to write.
You are the warm radiance of the sun
and every stellar star in the sky at night.
You are the things that you enjoy,
even if no one else around you agrees.
Do what you love. No, seriously.
You’ll be amazed at what sets you free.
You are the pride and effort in your work
and how hard you try at anything you do.
In a world so full of so many similar people,
Why would you want to be anyone but you?
The chair across from me now sits empty,
as 12-year-old me slowly slipped away from view.
She’s nothing more than an echo, a memory.
Now, your personal journey now is so perfectly you.
Go on. Sparkle, shine, glow, grow, and fly.
Explore this amazing world all the way through.
And finally, if no one else has told you today,
Know that I love you.
SLAY YOUR WEIRD
By Dr. Nick Miller
They’re like, Be chill, and I’m like, Bet,
But chill’s overrated, have y’all met me yet?
I’m just built different—no cap, that’s facts,
I’m the glitch in the Matrix, the cheese to your snacks.
My vibe is chaotic, my drip’s kinda sus,
But I’m main character energy—can’t cancel this bus.
I stan my own cringe, I ghost all the norms,
Call me extra, I’m just pre-forming storms.
My rizz is unmatched, my skibidi’s clean,
I’m the big plot twist in every routine.
I’m not just a vibe—I’m the entire lore,
Here leveling up while the NPCs snore.
My life’s a canon event, no need to pretend,
I’m the plot they’ll study when the credits come to an end.
No side quest energy—I’m actually OP,
Certified iconic? Yeah, that’s on me.
Look, being mid? That’s an actual L.
The real glow-up is being yourself, for real.
So don’t let the haters yeet you away—
Serve your own slay, each and every day.
Because normal’s a flop, and weird’s the GOAT,
Life’s a big vibe, so let’s stay afloat.
Just embrace your aura and flex your strange—
You’re the blueprint, dawg—please never change.