McCallion
Quest

The Frenchies VS. The English Muffins....

Should We or The School try Harder to Make Us Come Together As One Group???

 By Alisha Sawhney and Devika Jain

For many of us, the first day of junior high school is nerve wracking and full of surprises. But one thing we all have in common is the sense of belonging when we all see our old friends. For the first few days, we stick with our own “people” and slowly adjust to the new atmosphere of junior high (more specifically, here at Hazel). After a while, we begin to realize that there are also others in the school besides the ones that we only talk to and the ones in our own classes. As distant as we, French immersion students, see them as, should we take the initiative to think of these English kids as one of us or part of us? 

            We “Frenchies” have never truly found a mutual bond between us and the English people, affectionately called ‘muffins’. Here at Hazel, there has never been a real sense of unification to make us feel as one and the attitudes we have towards one another are not as strong as the ones we share amongst ourselves. It’s as if there is an invisible barrier between us and the English kids that separates us for no explainable reason. It’s just the way it is – we have never done anything to change that and, if you asked many kids in either camp they would probably tell you that we like it the way it is.  

            Although the barrier still exists, there are some English kids who we do communicate with, like in gym class, or during extra curricular activities. However, these are rare cases. In general, Frenchies and English muffins are two separate groups that pretty much stay with their own kind. We aren’t trying to be discriminatory towards them, nor are they to us, but it’s seems to be just the way both “sides” feel and there’s nothing we can really do about it. 

            On the playground, it is easy to differentiate the “Frenchies” from the “English muffins”, to say the least. There is some unexplainable aura about the “Frenchies” that we see as something that we can relate to that differs from the “English muffins”. There is no social obligation that we must follow, but in our opinion, the only reason why we stay away from each other is because there is no common thread that pulls us together so we feel “at home” with our own kind. 

            There once was a time when the “frenchies” thought that the other “frenchies” from different schools could never bond the way that we do now. Little did we know that some of them would end up being our best friends. To tell you the truth, the influences around us and our personal choices have all affected the way we think.  

            Should we still do our part and try to create a better relationship between us and the “English muffins”? Well, the answer is no, simply because we just like the way it is, and if we ever did try, then it should be something we do naturally, it should not be encouraged by staff or by school functions. The bottom line is…if we like the way life is, should we have to change anything at all?