I was in SS1 when I got expelled. I can still remember the day it happened.

I couldn’t go home. I was so scared to face my father. I knew for sure that he was going to beat me.

I was so afraid that I had to go to my elder sister’s house. My plan was to hide there for as long as I could.

I remember begging my sister not to tell anyone especially our father. She told me to choose between going back home to tell them what happened or have her call them.

I agreed to tell them myself.

As I slowly walked home that day, I wished the world would end.

Luckily, my father was not at home when I got back. I gave my mother my expulsion letter. I told her what happened. I cried so much. It took her a while to calm me down.

I spent the rest of the day in my room mostly crying.

The next morning my father asked why I wasn’t in school. I guess my mum had not told him.

I didn’t know how to break the news. He asked to drop me in school. At this point, I knew I had no choice but to open up.

In tears, I told him how about 20 of us were expelled for an event that happened in school. To my surprise rather than beat me, he tried to calm me down.

Then, he said to me; "This is not the end of the world. I know you very well. You are my daughter and I know you are well behaved. But it is sad to see you get expelled.
I guess this is just a lesson for you to watch the people you call your friends. That way you will not get into trouble. Learn from this mistake. And don’t worry, we will get you into another school".

My dad’s words made me feel a bit better. But, it was still a challenging time for me. To sit at home while my mates went to school.

However, I learnt so many things while at home. I learnt the importance of having people around to support you at trying times. Imagine if my family turned their back on me.

I also learnt to be careful with who I call my friends. I mean see what happened to me. It was a result of hanging out with the wrong group at the wrong time.

My advice to everyone reading this is to learn from my mistake. Watch your friends. Make sure they are people who have the same values and beliefs as you. You need to make friends with people that will help you become a better version of yourself.

If your friends keep getting you in trouble then you need to change them. Wondering how you can make good friends read this article on How to build safe friendships.

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