"Without a gentle contempt for education no man's education is complete."
Today in Deluz's class, opening lecture, he asked us what we had gotten out of summer this year, something we had learned that we could take with us. The more I thought about it, the more I realized this summer that being 17 years old is not the same thing as being 13 years old, and that life, priorities, and myself in general have changed, grown, and shifted quite a bit, more than I ever realized before. I mean of course I'm still the same basic person I always was, same foundation that will never change, and there are still so many things I loved then that I loved now. And of course that youthful sense of adventure and fun and carelessness and all those parts of childhood that we hope we will never lose hold of are still a major part of who I am and who I always hope to be. But, for instance, taking P.E. this summer made me realize that I'm at the point in my life where I have to make a conscious decision and effort to take care of myself. As a child, that was never even something to think about, it was one of those things that just happened naturally. And in Vermont this year, I just found that I enjoyed subtle experiences so much more, and that I appreciated things like the ambience and the atmosphere enough to let them greatly influence my verdict of the trip. When I was younger, I always packed a backpack to the brim, bringing all kinds of DVDs and games and magazines, and those things I really honestly felt like I couldn't live those weeks without. They were a seriously major part of my life and who I was. And this year all I brought with me were my summer assignment books and my iPod. It was the first time I felt I could be perfectly content without bringing practically all my possessions with me. And I was. Sounds kind of weird, but it just really felt overall like a big shift for me, like I truly am growing up in ways I never even realized growing up entails.
First day of school was very good. I'm really really happy with my classes (courses, teachers, classmates, class sizes). Though I am still a bit worried about the workload, this is the first year of my entire life where I honestly feel like I am going to be enriched as a person by my classes. I've always learned the subjects, always learned things like discipline and all those things that automatically come with school, but this year just has a feeling like school is really going to have an honest affect on me as a person forever, not just as a high school student. I have a very good feeling about this year, in school, and in art. I hope socially its as enriching a year as well. I think it will be.
PS--Seeds is going to rock.
First day of school was very good. I'm really really happy with my classes (courses, teachers, classmates, class sizes). Though I am still a bit worried about the workload, this is the first year of my entire life where I honestly feel like I am going to be enriched as a person by my classes. I've always learned the subjects, always learned things like discipline and all those things that automatically come with school, but this year just has a feeling like school is really going to have an honest affect on me as a person forever, not just as a high school student. I have a very good feeling about this year, in school, and in art. I hope socially its as enriching a year as well. I think it will be.
PS--Seeds is going to rock.