There's Something About Catholicism #2

Early High School and Loss of Faith

The year was 1999, I started Year 7 at Catholic College Wodonga, or CCW for short. It too was near my house, there was also a Coles Supermarket, a McDonald's, tavern and few small specialty stores that most students would visit before, after, and during when wagging. Right next door to CCW was at the time the most notorious of the Wodonga High Schools, Wodonga West Secondary College, the school that my best friend and boyfriend Kyle attended.

Most of the kids I went to St. Monica's Primary with also went on to attend CCW, as did most the students from the other Catholic primary school, St. Augustine's. There were other students from the various other state primary schools, as well as others from Albury who would come over the border preferring the education of Catholic College to the education of Albury's Xavier High School. Neither is better than the other, simply different Diocese's and State's making for different varieties of educational styles.

In Year 7 I was strongly questioning my sexuality, by Year 8 I knew for sure that "I was different" and thought my friends "had the right to know" and of course blabbed to everyone else. Word got around, before long my entire year level, then the entire school knew. Before long, everyone from neighbouring schools knew. That was the year 2000 - a year of change, of progression... of loneliness, emptiness, finding new friends and more importantly, finding myself - but not necessarily finding God!