The official site of the Torch, the student-run newspaper at Glenbrook North High School.

Torch

The official site of the Torch, the student-run newspaper at Glenbrook North High School.

Torch

The official site of the Torch, the student-run newspaper at Glenbrook North High School.

Torch

Drop your pants, worries

adamfinal
Photo Illustration by Gabe Weininger

The second my pants hit the floor the entire class erupted into laughter.

As sophomores we had to give speeches regarding a topic from a book we read in class. Well, everyone except me read the book. My topic was Rastafarians, a very broad topic that opened itself up to a wide variety of paths I could take while speaking.

I spent about 10 minutes writing the actual speech and around two days finding the perfect costume to go along with it. I wore a red, yellow and green beanie with fake dreadlocks attached to it and a Bob Marley T-shirt that was anything but school appropriate.

Another article of clothing I was sporting that day was sweatpants with a very loose waist. While waiting for my turn to present on the glorious life of Rastafarians, I contemplated how else I could make this speech memorable, especially considering that it was being filmed.

Midway through the speech I started to lose the attention of my listeners, including my teacher, so I looped my thumb into the right side of my sweatpants and slid them down my legs. With my pants around my ankles, standing in my shorts, I continued to speak as the class laughed uncontrollably. When I glanced around the room to study the faces of my peers I saw the same expression of surprise, confusion and hysterical laughter.

Only one person wasn’t laughing as I completed the speech: my teacher. She might have been worried about the fact that my junior year teacher would now have to see me drop my pants on film as part of a digital portfolio. Or she may have been worried that her eyes were bulging so far out of her face that she might not be able to get them back in.

I’m very content with the four years I have spent at GBN because I never for a second stopped myself from doing something I wanted to do. I don’t let people stop me from embracing the world around me. Doing what I want to do makes me happy. I’m not saying everyone should start pulling off their pants in class, and I’m no expert on happiness, but I just go for it.