classes of escapism
When I was still an active volunteer for the American Red Cross, I took their offered Emergency Medical Responder (EMR) class once every few years. I pretty much knew the material, and it was a class I enjoyed. More importantly, I knew the instructors and most of my fellow students b/c we were all members of the First Aid Services Team (F.A.S.T.). These classes usually took place on Tues and Thurs evenings after work for about 6 weeks, if I'm remembering correctly.
Fast forward to Aug-Sept 2023: I enrolled in Foothills College's EMT Refresher course. It was a far cry from the 6-month EMT program that I completed back in Jan-Jun 2021. The latter was a class of mostly kids essentially - kids in their years of high school, in college, or fairly newly college grads. There was around 30-50 of them. And as with any large group of kids, discipline can be an issue. So the EMT instructors back in 2021 had to be strict which is understandable. And plus, there was a ton of course materials to cover.
For the EMT Refresher class, there were many differences:
- The class was much smaller; only about 15 students, max;
- The students' demographics were overall much older; most of us including myself have regular careers;
- Since we were all NREMT certified, we pretty much knew our stuff already.
Due to these reasons, the Refresher course's instructor - who also taught the main program back in 2021 - was much more lenient and laxed this time around. It was to the point that she was very very chill. If we didn't have to go thru the usual online quizzes and final exam, then all of us could've pretty much completed the course with our eyes closed.
So yeah, the Refresher course couldn't have been more different than from the initial program. A complete 180. It was a very nice change of pace.
In a way, I kinda wished that the EMT (and even more so, the EMR classes with the Red Cross) would last forever. They were so fun and chill and laid back. They were with people I knew and trusted and respected, and vice versa. If I didn't have to do the usual 8-5 jobs or had to take care of something called bills, I'd just stick with those evening classes.
Which makes them essentially classes of escapism for me, if you will. Ofc, being in places of comfort and safety doesn't really entail personal development and growth. Which isn't really all good and well b/c the real world isn't like that unfortunately. Kinda like the lockdowns during COVID, you have to get out eventually.
But yeah, it doesn't change the fact that I love those classes and wish I could stay in them forever.