Everybody remembers their first crush. While some were silly sandbox love stories, others were dramatic middle school hallway relationships. Regardless of who it was, when or where it happened, first crushes all have something in common: they are unforgettable.
For me, my first crush occurred on the first day of kindergarten, when 5-year-old me laid my eyes on the most eligible bachelor in my school. While I will not name drop, I can confidently say that every girl in my grade had a crush on him. My crush continued well throughout elementary school. I do not know if it was his athletic ability in box ball or his ability to finish his tests way before everyone else — which was the biggest flex back then — but younger me was completely set on him.
Eventually, we went our separate ways and attended different middle schools. However, a lesson I think everyone can take away from their first crush is that this type of love never really dies.
Most people experience their first crush in elementary school, and it is honestly the purest kind of love because it is simply innocent, uncomplicated and full of imagination. Even if these crushes never develop into anything more, they remind people of the most wholesome version of admiration and the feeling of a world full of possibilities. It is always important to keep that feeling about crushes within you, no matter what age you are.
While elementary school crushes felt simple and cheesy, the transition into middle school suddenly makes everything more complicated. For many, this is the time when crushes start to feel more real, rather than playground admiration; it is something deeper. All of a sudden, there are unspoken rules, awkward moments and pressure of what it actually means to like someone. Instead of innocent butterflies, people begin overthinking every interaction, wondering if these feelings could turn into something more.
“I remember my first middle school crush, at the time, it was the biggest thing going on in my life. We met in eighth grade physical science, and we were both 13,” Miami Palmetto Senior High junior Christina Larssen said. “It was definitely a chaotic time. While we bonded together, it was the first time I felt like my crush was actually real, and all of a sudden everything felt much more deep but also much more conscious.”
As people grow older, feelings only continue to evolve. Crushes become less about playful looks and hallway butterflies and more about real connections, vulnerability and sometimes even heartbreak. Yet, one’s early experiences of liking someone in elementary or middle school often shape how they view love later in life. Those first crushes teach what it feels like to admire someone, to hope and to care deeply, even if nothing ever comes from it. In many ways, they are the foundation of how people begin to understand romance.
Especially around Valentine’s Day, it is worth remembering that love does not always have to be grand or serious to matter. Sometimes, the smallest crushes leave the biggest impressions, simply because they were the beginning.
