The past three and a half months
have been a huge learning experience. I
have learned more about myself and the world around me than I ever could have
imagined.
Although I have learned a lot about
myself, what is somewhat confusing, is that the more I learn, the more I feel
like I know less and less about
myself. One of my biggest fears is
losing touch with myself, so, feeling like I don’t really know myself does
scare me in some ways. One night during class when I brought this up, Marita
asked if that is really bad thing, to lose oneself. I guess it really isn’t. I was thinking more on it and maybe I feel
all confused and as if I’m losing myself because I could be going through a
transition in life and so I am in a sense losing myself, my old self. I shouldn’t be afraid, but I think living in
a society that pressures people to always know who they are and what they are doing
and to never change because then you’re just crazy, does make me a bit
scared. I fear not knowing what I am
going to do for a career in the future.
I see that education is really
important in the process of freeing people’s minds and because of this I am
contemplating a future in the field of education. Sometimes I ponder becoming a teacher or
going into the administrative end for educational policy or some position where
I could try to manage public school curriculum.
I don’t think there are enough social studies courses. There is so much emphasis on the main courses
like English and math, especially preparing for SATs. I think there should be more emphasis and
requirements for social sciences and life skills courses in public schools. These could serve to introduce and support
conversations surrounding topics such as race, gender, sexuality, religion,
culture, and basically how people live differently. Hopefully resulting in a better recognition
and understanding of the differences amongst us but also the similarities we
share.
On the topic of differences, though,
people are far too often ridiculed and pressured into society’s mold of what
people “should be”. Classes that discuss
these social constructs that we face every day of our lives would hopefully
facilitate a better understanding of their own selves and the people around
them. High school is an environment that
harbors group “cliques” and the presence of peer pressures that many students
fall into. No young adolescent wants to
be left out and most want to fit in with the “popular” crowd, therefore, they
are usually not confident or comfortable with themselves enough to follow their
own path or say no to something most others are doing. If there were classes similar to Marita’s,
where you can create an environment that allows different people to come
together to learn and talk about social and even personal issues that might get
students to open up. This may allow them
to become more comfortable and confident in themselves and develop a better
understanding of those around them.
Although we have different personalities and beliefs, we at least share
the same emotions; we all know what it feels like to, be happy, angry, sad,
jealous, etc. We are all human and
although so simple, it is a crucial fact to keep in mind about one
another. There are too many instances in
life when people are dehumanized and categorized as less than another, even in
high school cliques.
One thing that I have recognized
while living in Cape Town are the walls that act to keep people out and separate. There are also invisible walls that act as
separations in life that divide people into different races, cultures,
religions, and other social constructions. Everyone is always looking at
differences that divide us and box us into categories separate from one
another. I understand we are different
and we should acknowledge and embrace these differences. But I have also come to believe that we
should seek to recognize what makes us similar to one another even more than
what makes us different. I find it would
be much more progressive and satisfying to relate and develop a love and
respect for another person through the connections first, and then embrace the
differences. Thinking realistically
about the way people treat each other, people will be more willing to get along
with those they can relate to on some level, maybe because they see themselves
in another person who they can connect with and would therefore be more likely
to treat them the way they would like to be treated.
Learning about ourselves and the
people around us is the only way we can reach a peaceful coexistence, by then
reaching a mutual understanding and appreciation of one another.
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