Coming of Age: the Making of the Self in University

Opposition people kept coming to me “You have to watch counting on polling station this station! There things are really bad.”  Another said “No, you need to go to this other station! Things are worse there.” Another woman, a Yushchenko supporter, called me on my cell phone, “Come right away to my station!” She was crying. I nearly broke down myself.  This was probably the most difficult time in my observation. I could not decide where I should go.  The opposition often exaggerates.  So it is hard to judge.  Finally, I decided to go to the station where the woman was crying.
~Professor Lucan Way, “Observations in Ukraine: November 2004- Confronting Electoral Fraud”

  ***

Last September, I decided to finally pick another major. Among the choices I had (History, Global East Asia Studies, International Development Studies and Political Science), I picked Political Science as the Major to go with my English Literature Specialist Degree (Minor -> Major -> Specialist; just meant you’ve taken twice as much difficult courses as you move along the hierarchy). Of couse, I was hesitant at first. I mean, for four consecutive semesters, I’ve indulged myself with nothing but Pre-1900 and Modern Literature courses. It was a four well-fed semester and it turned me into a fat kid. But alas, I know I had to pick another Minor or Major. I needed something that will quench my thirst for social knowledge, something to go with the literature knowledge I’ve been munching on. I’m done with all that biological and chemical scientific shitzzuzahs. 

When I started this semester, I admit I was a bit overwhelmed. It’s like being math-free for 3 years and suddenly taking a course in linear algebra (ok, for some people this is a piece of cake, for me it’s a piece of metal screw stuck in my throat). I have to learn political terminologies again and be up-to-date with past and present international issues.

I really found it a struggle but then again, I remember when I shifted from Biochemistry to English, it was a hard in the beginning too. I was with these people who practically took all English courses in highschool and know more about interpreting metaphors and close-reading exercises. Some even have International Baccalaureate highschool diplomas. And now, it’s the same thing all over again. I’m with people who have taken history and sociology courses in highschool. Although not fully, it still prepared them for it. Of course, I’m not going to let this stop me. It’s a hard course to get by, but my thirst of political science knowledge will save me. 

I’m not someone who studies for the sake of studying. I get bored easily, that’s a fact. I live by the saying: grades don’t matter in the real world, because really, it’s only in some limited instances that they do. University is all about theory and it’s how you manage to apply those theories learned in real life that matters. Being just plain booksmart might get you the dream job you always wanted. It doesn’t mean, however, that it will bring you the life you’ve always wanted. Your job doesn’t define who you are. It’s how you live your life that does. 

I study English Literature because I want to become a good writer someday. And now, I’m studying Political Science because I want to become a better person, to be aware of the sociological and historical impacts that one local or foreign policy can make. These are the courses that I chose as my foundation, it doesn’t necessarily mean the same for everybody else. Each person has their own calling to answer to. We only have one life to live and it’s up to you if you want to live somebody else’s dreams or your own.

That is all.

Adieu.