An Open Letter to the Class of ’83 …
Well hey there!
Long time no hear; fancy you stumbling upon this page 😉 . It’s okay, I’ve been known to Google or Facebook stalk people I used to go to school with too – so I completely understand!
This is what I used to look like in Grade 8. Is my face familiar?!
I’ve caught up with some of you at school reunions, or on Facebook. Others have disappeared off the face of the planet! Does anybody know what happened to Cathy Pratt, my best friend in Year 9?
Back in the day, you knew me as Janet Moore from Aspley High. I’ve been Janet Camilleri now for over 25 years and have the most awesome husband a gal could wish for. And, we have two great kids, a boy (Mr 21), and a girl (Miss 19).
I have my own business, making my living from writing for the web and providing search engine optimisation (SEO) services – things we had never even heard of back then! And I’m loving life 🙂 .
As a teenager, I was troubled by acne, and I was real skinny. Thanks for the nicknames (not!) – “Flatjack” in Year 8 as I was a late developer; “pigeon legs” in Years 11 and 12 for my skinny legs and knobby knees. These days my boobs have definitely arrived, and my legs are probably my favourite feature – see for yourself!
I was being raised by a single parent and we had no money, which made it really hard to fit in – thank goodness for school uniforms, because I never had the “right” clothes. How jealous I used to be of you, when you would talk about the awesome presents you got for Christmas or birthdays – bikes, stereos, roller skates – all big ticket items. These were things I could only dream of.
So how do you remember me? As a quiet, nerdy type? Perhaps if you were in my circle of friends, you knew I could be a bit of a clown. Being funny can often hide deep wounds, y’know?
What you probably didn’t realise – hell, I didn’t even realise back then – was that my mother had a severe mental illness, and I was subjected to terrible verbal, emotional and physical abuse. So those times when I was unable to participate in school events, even study groups? And you really gave me a hard time about it? There was a good reason why I couldn’t go … I just couldn’t tell you what it was … that the violent repercussions at home just weren’t worth it.
This pic was taken when we were in Year 12. Can you see the bruising and cut on my cheek? My split lip? My puffy eyelids?
Miss T, my theatre teacher in Year 12, snidely informed me that I couldn’t act. Inside I was thinking, “Lady, you have NO idea – I’m actually a BRILLIANT actor. I act every single day, and you have no f****n clue.”
I Must Confess: I was never one of the popular kids, or the “in” crowd. I wasn’t at all sporty. I hung out with the “God Squad” – the goody two shoes / church goers – remember them?
I was devastated when I wasn’t made a prefect. That was the year when prefects were selected by their peers, instead of the teachers – there were some very *interesting* choices of prefect as a result! It hurt that I was a “goody goody”, but couldn’t even win a nerdy title like “prefect”. I can’t help wondering, if the teachers had chosen that year, if I would have made the cut. In hindsight, who really gives a rats!
I felt ignored and forgotten when I didn’t even rate a mention in our Senior Gag Awards in the school magazine. Ah well. With a class as big as ours was, I’m sure there were dozens of others that felt much the same!
Chances are, you too have a story that I had no idea about when we were in school. I often think how lucky/blessed I am these days; my teenage years might have been crap, but I am making up for lost time now. I really hope life has been kind to you too since we last met.
Best wishes,
Janet Moore from Aspley High x
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