Identities

After twelve years, even those of us who don’t care for school can likely admit that it’s a very prevalent part of our lives. Or, it was. Some of us will continue our education, moving on to colleges in and out of state. Others are moving into trades and careers in their fields of interest.

At this stage in our lives, we have spent 14,700 hours in school, 15,925, for those of us who went to pre-k, minus however many days you may have missed. Perhaps it is a niche experience, but those years used to be my entire life. That’s a bit of an exaggeration, but not by much. I did very little else but schoolwork from 6th grade to 10th. I woke up first thing in the morning, sat through classes for 7 hours, went home, did my homework, ate dinner, and went to bed. I never left the house except for school or work, I rarely talked to my friends, and my biggest “hobby” was reading the books we got assigned for English class.

This isn’t to say I particularly enjoyed any of these things, because outside of the reading I really didn’t. I’m not afraid to admit that I really don’t enjoy most of the things we do in school, I’m sure plenty of you here can agree. But, somewhere along the way, I’d started to tie my academics directly into my self-worth and my feelings about myself. I hadn’t even realized I’d done it, honestly, until we got sucked into quarantine. It clicked for me when I looked at those around me. Everyone else was so clearly struggling and I was just doing the same routine as I’d done before, with the only change being Zoom calls rather than a physical classroom.

At that point, it was sort of a “you don’t want it until you can’t have it” situation. So, I started making a conscious effort to try and detach myself from school. I reconnected more fully with my friends, online until we could be in person together again, I actively sought out new hobbies and interests, and once quarantine restrictions lifted I made an active choice to go places. I took hikes, ate outside of the house, window shopped and went out with friends and actually lived and made memories for what felt like the first time in my life. I was a bit of a fish out of water, at first, but I had great friends to help me into it. 

And I know Mrs. Barker is looking at me and my late assignments right now probably regretting my decision on my behalf. Perhaps I detached from education a little too far, I can admit that. But I can’t say I regret it.  I have healthy, active friendships. I have hobbies. I have a job I actually enjoy and don’t just tolerate. These are very simple things, I know that. But they’re worthwhile, and I only have them because I made a conscious effort. I allowed myself to be worth something other than my grades, my education, and my work, and I’m a much better person for it. 

Going forward, everyone can learn from me and make that effort before they’ve realized they already missed out. Whether you’ll be attending college in the coming years, or going straight into a job, take a couple of minutes a day to just be aware of the life you’re living. Make mistakes, do stupid things, meet new people, and have new experiences. Our education and our jobs are important to us, but they will never be more important than truly enjoying the life we are living. 

“Campamento de formación de Juventud Idente” by Dirección de Comunicación UTPL is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 2.0.