The Girl in the Scarf

Someone asked me last week what high school was like for me. I could only respond with one word: lonely. I mean, looking back, how could it not be? I was a teenage girl listening to prog rock while attending an all-girl’s Catholic high school in the 2010s. The photo above is of me at 13 years old, almost done with grade 7, and about to attend my very first concert in March 2010. I’m wearing the jacket of my alma mater, La Reina High School. The school has closed permanently as of 2 years ago, but when driving by it during my recent trip to California, I could feel the ghosts of those years of loneliness radiating off the dead parking lot and empty courtyard where hordes of girls sat at lunchtime. I wasn’t without friends completely. I had a small group of girls with whom I had developed some degree of meaningful connection. I’ll admit, I still think about some of them today, even missing them.

But despite having some people to share my time with, there was that nagging loneliness lurking in my mind. It was the aching feeling of knowing that I had discovered something incredible (prog rock), but had no one in my age group to share it with. I made several attempts to turn at least someone in my social group on to the wonders of prog, including burning a playlist of Yes music for one friend who never listened to it, and playing “Wonderous Stories” for a particularly good friend, who decided that the song was just “ok.” No hard feelings, though. At my core, I knew I was getting my hopes too high, and that the odds of my fellow high schoolers becoming as enamored with prog as I was were quite low. Still, I’ve learned that, when you’re passionate about something, you can end up casting doubt aside and taking chances. It’s more fun to share experiences and passions with others, and I’ve been lucky to be able to do that with numerous good friends that I’ve made over the years. They aren’t of my generation, but they are some of my most cherished friends, and if there’s one thing I’ve learned, it’s that age is just a number when it comes to friendship. True friendship is among the best gifts bestowed upon me by prog rock’s presence in my life. Even though I had many lonely days in school, my spirits were lifted with each song, each concert, and each conversation with these special friends. In the end, that’s the best I can ask for.