Today is my first day at school. I really am a bundle of joy. This is probably the first time I am going to school because I want to. I look back at each time I was in school and there is a recurring pattern of the reason. I went to school to become employable. I do not discredit any part of my schooling in the past, it served me well from a practical living perspective (buying food, finding lodging, clothing, etc.).
I head into today with a different perspective on life, I seek learning. The goal is very simple, to be able to learn about life in as many aspects as there are available to me. This particular schooling choice is made with the intention to open up an understanding of the human physical potential. Simply put I want a PhD in Kinesiology.
The search for knowledge and learning rather than the search for the best paying job with prestige is the difference between 16-year-old me doing electrical engineering at UCT and current me. I am more in tune with myself.
Let me make it clear. I do not think I have ever applied my mind optimally to learning anything as much as I am doing recently. “…When you put your mind to it…” These words resonate with me now. I am going to use the tool (mind) as best as I can.
The course I am studying was designed by individuals with individual and collective expertise. The course is finite, it has a scope, it has defined outcomes based on the scope. At undergraduate level all I have to do to progress is show a comprehension and application of 50% of the scope. The challenge in school is not the course content, it is the ability to train the mind to stay focused, to recall, to recognise patterns and apply the rules to different scenarios.
Once undergraduate is done properly, one tends to look beyond the scope designed by others. We start to make realisations within and outside the scope of our course material. We begin to learn more about life in a specific field as well as in general. As I write this part, I feel like I am talking about my life in its entirety.
I will enjoy this journey, including the queues at registration, the classes and all that comes with it.
P.S. Are you excited? What excites you?
Yes, I am excited. The ability to grow consciously and deliberately excites me.