Drama. We see it everywhere in schools and around kids our age. I try to stay out of it, like most of us do, but its essentially impossible. Whether the drama travels through gossip, relationships, toxic friends, or something as simple as differences, we have all partaken in some form of it. You’re lying to yourself if you’ve never talked about someone behind their back or told your best friends secret to a basic stranger. It may not be as extreme as it sounds, but in the end, gossip is still gossip. It tears apart friendships and makes us regret the things we do.

Our society teaches us to praise those that are popular and appear to be better than us. Maybe its because they have the most exciting snaps or the most Instagram followers. No matter what they seem to do, you always feel smaller and less important than them. Our initial reactions usually tell us we need to impress these people. Even if they don’t make the best choices and we know they won’t help us succeed in the future, we always wonder what our lives would be like if we fit in with them. As a result, we gossip. Telling lies and jokes about other people to make yourself seem cooler. And if you haven’t, you’ve seen it happen or been the effect of it. Drama is an endless cycle that seems to get in the way of what you want and how we can get there.

The truth is, drama and gossip still exist because of jealousy. We always want something we know we can’t have. It's absolutely impossible for jealousy to disappear but we can start by making sure we don’t treat others differently because they have something we want. Everyday I’m on social media I can find someone who’s feed looks better than mine, takes cuter photos of themselves, has a better status and seems to lead a happier life than me. It truly feels bad knowing you can’t be as ‘good’ as them. It isn’t bad to feel jealous because it’s a normal reaction. It really depends on how we cope with the situation. So how do most people cope? They bully these teens for appearing better, comment rude slurs, tell them they’re fake, and break them apart.

Followers, status, and material objects separate us from looking at personality in a friend and instead lead us to focus on what clothes they wear and whether they seem attractive or not. I will always remember the day one of my classmates walked into class wearing shiny red shoes that must have cost at least $1000. Everyone in my grade had heard about it and he was the new trend setter. The next week or two, three other kids walked into class wearing the exact same brand. Their friend group was starting to tease their ‘old friends’ for not having expensive shoes like theirs. These materials separated a friendship and made a lot of kids self conscious for what they were wearing and what they couldn’t wear. The shoes themselves didn’t look all that good, they only bought them to please the crowd. This is only one of the effects trends can have on society. Now, these boys are no longer friends and haven’t spoken for about a year.

Drama may not be as bad as you think it is, but you only understand why its such a grave problem when you experience in first hand. People can be mean. Make sure you stay loyal to good friends, be yourself, and don’t involve yourself in material things. Experiencing drama is part of everyone’s life at every stage, but high school is especially a large trap for it. Staying out of drama completely is good but knowing how to handle a situation properly is better.