What’s worth your time, and how do we decide?
For a while, I believed that worrying about grades and class schedules and “which colleges will accept me?” was the only way to lock in on school and come out the other side with a place to go next.
Sure, I used to run outside every day after school and climb trees here and there as a kid, but how can I make time for that when I have articles to read for history and an AP Chem exam tomorrow morning?
And I did love to read novels, watch movies, paint, and play guitar. I’m just too fatigued to do much else other than study, eat, and sleep when I get home.
None of this is healthy. I was so stuck in a cycle of worrying and working and then worrying more about my work that I never took time out of my day to imagine what all my work would amount to in the “real world.”
In my junior year, I began to combine all of my academic curiosities: analyzing language in AP French, which connected with my newfound interest in linguistics; learning the processes of the brain in AP Psychology; and studying those chemical processes in Chemistry.
Even crafting up an academic future that encompassed a lot of my interests didn’t lessen my worries. It wasn’t my reality — yet, at least — so it didn’t feel satisfying to have a plan. What I soon realized was necessary for staying afloat were the things that grounded me in the present.
Nature has always been present. Every time I take a step outside, I feel like I’m human again and not just a student working towards a goal. Words flow easily here, and my problems become small.
Art has always been a reflection of how humans view the world. Every time I paint on a canvas, whether it be a still life or something from my imagination, it feels solid and real and grounded to who I am as a person, as opposed to just some acrylic paint.
Journalism is an outlet for reality. Reporting on local businesses, researching the causes of northern lights when they passed over our skies, talking to new people to share new perspectives, and analyzing our own realities in opinion articles.
All of these, which I’ve adopted back into my sphere of activities, reflect my childhood hobbies and passions from way before I ever stressed about integrals or thermochem or a research paper deadline.
It’s good to get out of your head! Which is ironic, considering I’m going to college to study the brain. I hope to apply my future neuroscience knowledge to real-world situations, rather than attend more years of school for the sake of a degree.
So really, the routine doesn’t just have to be sleep, eat, school, and repeat. I achieve the most personal success when I allow myself time to stay connected with the world around me.
Make something, whether it be a painting or food or piece of writing! Talk with other people! Read news stories!
Thank you to all of my friends, family, and colleagues on the Panther Press who have grounded me in reality.
