Ahh, the Sweet Goop of Returning to Higher Education, and Other Things

Yesterday was not the most pleasant of days as Hubby and I had a delicious bout of virus-ness. While I was able to stay home from school and actually rest in order for my body to attempt to heal up, he was forced to go on to work in order to pay the bills. Today I have made it back to school, which is good as I had a math test make up to do, and I am feeling quite tired, but not so nauseous. Hubby has returned to work even though I asked, almost pleaded with him to remain home so he could get some rest and get firmly over this creeping crud. Hubby is a very strong man physically, plus he is stubborn beyond belief. Hopefully this stuff will have worked out of his system by this weekend. (There is a lot going on this weekend.)

On more pleasant notes, however, I discovered a writing prompt that made me actually sit for a moment and think about it. (It would be nice to be able to write about it, but legal writing class and a paper due in it keeps my mind firmly on legal writing issues at the moment.) So, I thought I would pass it along to you, Dear Readers, for your perusal as well as perhaps prompting your own creativity. A genie just pops into the room where you are and offers you three wishes. What do you ask for? You may send them to me to post here, or you can post at the Writer's Digest site itself. I would really like to know what you came up with.

As I said earlier, there was a math test I missed yesterday because of the ickiness. I had nightmares about it for a good portion of last night and it was first thing on my mind this morning when I woke up. When I got to school I actually had to wait on my instructor to finish a call before asking for the test. She smiled at me in this pleased, almost surprised sort of way, and agreed. If she had not agreed, as my brain was trying to tell me, I would have pleaded! After taking the exam I feel more confident. I believe I actually did quite well, especially since we were permitted one sheet of handwritten notes to have with us during the exam. Since we are beginning to use formulas you can imagine what was pretty much on my sheet. I only needed the sheet twice!

However, something that happened just prior to taking the test, and then directly before my math class began, that made me sit quiet for a moment and take issue at what I do as in comparison to what some students do (actually a lot more than I would like to admit, even to myself). A girl in my math class, as well as in my program field, came strolling into the building--and I do mean strolling. She is a very pretty young woman, probably in her early twenties, but she always has an angry, aggravated look on her face which takes away from her beauty. This girl also carries, almost radiates an aloofness and arrogance that keeps many people away from her and she drops it rarely (usually when she is in need of something, like notes). I asked her if she had taken the test and she said, "No, I wasn't here yesterday." She then proceeded past me with determination as if I had stopped her from reaching the finish line of an important race in the Olympics.

This girl, though young and beautiful, does not take higher education seriously. If she can get by with doing the very least she can she is happy and complains when she is challenged, even in the smallest bit. It makes me sad that there are so many students here who do this. Sometimes I think I try so hard because I always have had something to prove, to show that I could keep up somewhere with all of the rest of the "normal" people. Now I am beginning to accept I genuinely enjoy learning, as well as it is a field on which I am just as equal as everyone else. When I see someone so young, who has everything ahead of them practically pissing away their education because they seem lazy and don't want to be bothered with it, I almost get angry, then disappointed, and finally sad because they have so much before them and they just can't see it. Not really. Sometimes, when I see this, I think it is also my age: I am a lot older than this girl, but now I'm not so sure this is the reason a reaction like this makes me feel this way.

Please don't misunderstand: there are a lot of young people here trying their very best to do what they need, to succeed with the best grades possible. They have great outlooks, and high dreams and hopes. However, they are not the norm for the majority of students. Their number is quite small compared to the others who act arrogantly and as if education, school doesn't really matter for their futures and are, basically, forced to go to school by parents, spouses, or because they have children who need things and thus they need an education in order to get the better job to care for them.

It is just sad how some of them act. It also makes me think, what are they going to be like once they get into the work force? Are they going to be the same way? I believe the answer is pretty close to an affirmative. Lord help us all.