Eva Harder
Reporter
What do you want your life to be about?
This was a theme we talked about in my philosophy class last spring. Not “What do you want to do with your life?” but “What do you want your life to be about?” And here’s the thing: right now, I feel like our lives are about résumés.
College shouldn’t just be about preparing you for a job. College should be about, and I think used to be about, stretching your mind to limits you didn’t know you had.
College should drive you mad with experience.
You should feel things, see things and learn things you didn’t know existed.
But lately I feel as if we only join organizations because we know they’ll look good on a résumé. We do things, join teams and get jobs and meet people, not because we want to breathe in every crazy atom we can of this mad, insane world, but because we want to be a well-rounded individual.
I mean, when was the last time you got really pissed off about something that mattered?
When was the last time your life got gloriously, beautifully messy?
We’re so sheltered here. We live in a box.
All semester, I’ve gone to class, and I’ve gone to meetings, and I’ve gone to work, and I’ve done things that will look great on résumés, but how many times have I been enlightened?
How many times have I been challenged to think differently or oppose or agree or to fight for something?
Most people go to college so that they can get a decent job. There isn’t too much wrong with that. You need to work to eat. I get that. But before you go to your next job interview, and you’re revising your résumé to include the new organizations you’ve joined, and how high your GPA is, and how many times you’ve made the dean’s list, think about what you would put on the résumé for your life.
How many times have you had a spine-tingling kiss? How many conversations have you had, over beer or coffee, that kept you up until 2 a.m.? Have you ever seen what Paris looks like at dusk on top of the Eiffel tower? Have you ever tried to count the stars?
If I were to ever have a child, the best advice I could give that creature is this: don’t worry too much about how spotless your image is. Think about how authentic your experiences have been.
Don’t count and polish your trophies and blue ribbons. Remember the people who’ve made you laugh.
Awards, trophies, grades, are all tangible evidences of our hard work. But they are meaningless if you’ve never conquered a fear or hugged someone so hard it hurt.
Extend your learning outside the classroom. Read the books. Write the papers. If you can, get the grades. But first, first and foremost, live the life.
Résumés can be burned and forgotten in a matter of seconds. A well-lived life is immortal.
Be immortal. Don’t live a life easily forgotten.