The Desert Mermaid

I'm not sure if I'd qualify as 'gifted', but I was certainly much more advanced academically than others my age, plus some learning disabilities we didn't figure out until high school. But omfg it made my primary school years so horrible. Kindergarten was at a public school that point-blank refused to make any accommodations for me, which pissed my mom off, so next year was private school. My first grade teacher was absolutely amazing, she went over and beyond for the 'different' students. And then second grade was a teacher didn't care, third grade was the emotionally abusive terror who shall not be named, and yeah I never again got a teacher who was as awesome as Mrs. Brown in first grade. I bounced around through a lot of different teaching and school styles and some things worked and some didn't.
But yeah people really don't get how horrible it can be when, as a child, you're on one level, and nobody else is on that level, and you get more or less shunned (or at least mocked/passively ignored/given scathing looks of disgust/actively bullied by adults who should damn well know better).

On the plus side, I've been exposed to enough different learning and teaching styles that I'm really, really good with giving museum tours or talking to clients at work nowadays. Even if I am rather introverted and don't particularly care to interact with others for 10 hours a day :p.
On the down side, I don't think I ever did as well or went as far academically as I could or should have, due to lack of consistent support. Oh well.