Seriously before I actually stepped into any serious academic work, I always used to think that education was something that was straightforward, like crazy this was in my head. Like go to class, attend lectures,read your books, write your exam etc,that was the picture I had in my head then. And even when people were complaining about school then , I really wondered "seriously? Is it that hard?"
But fast forward to when I came to see how it was , I tasted the school , and I mean properly, that reality immediately corrected the mindset that I had.
Yes , education is indeed a really beautiful thing, it is an opportunity for open doors, it gives you known and you get exposed to different things and different people that could shape your life ,but to be honest here, nobody really does prepare you for the weight that comes with it, and seriously when I say weight, I dnt mean when you carry your textbooks etc, I am talking about bathe mental weight if being a student.
So you go with expectations of attending classes, you read , eat, sleep,rest, have some time for yourself, and that like that everything will balance itself out, let me tell you, you will meet pressure, seriously it's not a curse. With assignments that comes almost at the same time, deadlines that don't care weather you are tired or not, then we have group projects that depends on everyone in that group cooperating, and also don't forget tests, those ones will just come out of the blue.
Now to the Baba of them, financial struggles, education is not just about only reading, it also involves you spending too, textbooks, handouts, course materials, feeding, etc.
And if you are someone that doesn't like asking for help like me, it definitely will become another silent weight you would have to carry.
See here, the part that does hit differently is that life doesn't pause because you are in school, you will still have your personal issues, family dramas here and there, emotional struggles too, sometimes you might be trying to focus on your assignments but another thing is already bothering you, but you still have to try and do your own to be able to meet submission date.
There are some days that you will feel very motivated and some days you are just mentally tired, yet you will just have to keep going, because you know the reason you even started in the first place.amd that there is another weight. The expectation... From family who truly believe in you and are praying for you to succeed in life. And the expectation from yourself because damn! You don't want to be a failure.
But then, as heavy as it gets, I have come to understand that the weight was actually doing something, it was shaping me, it was teaching discipline, it forced me to manage my time better, it shows me how strong I was, sometimes growth doesn't feel light it's feel heavy sometimes.
Now learning isn't just about passing your exams, it is about you building your resilience, it is about pushing through even when it is overwhelming. Yes, the pressure can be real, but then it's prepares one for the life beyond the classroom.
So yes, education is beautiful, but it is also very heavy, and maybe that weight is part of what makes the journey meaningful in the end.
