Get that stick out of your ***

I’m not sure if you know this or not, but I am a 20 year old student in college. I have lofty goals for myself and am looking forward to my future. I know the real world will kick my ass because the reality will hit that well, it’s not that much fun anymore. I recognize that. I understand that maturity and professionalism is key in the real world. But wait, I am a 20 year old college student in college. Ah, I see now.

OK, so where am I going with this? It’s a long story but I’m gonna try to explain in a much shorter and entertaining blog entry instead. The more I go through college, the more I see that adults cannot connect with people my age. Sad I know, since they once were my age, enjoying every second of college, knowing that those 4-5 years were magical. Yes, magical. But now that they are adults, it’s as if they forget those times. All they can focus on is our future and how THEY can shape OUR future. Now, I’m all for role models and life lessons but I am also for making my own decisions and learning from my own mistakes. Would you like some examples? I thought so. Read on.

I guess this whole thing started in high school with student council. I was the VP of what was probably the best student council my HS has ever seen. Plain and simple, we got shit done. At least, when we were allowed. My school had the dumbest rules when it came to some things. Guys can’t have braids because it’s considered cross-dressing. All socks must be visible. No shorts ever even when the AC goes out in the school. I could go on and on but I won’t because I did enjoy my high school experience. But sometimes, it would be like pulling teeth just to get something we wanted. And obviously, whatever we asked for was for the good of the students. But again, the administration didn’t look at it that way. Instead of giving us the opportunity to make good decisions and maybe learn from some mistakes, they just made decisions for us. Such as now, the prom includes dinner. Don’t wanna attend the dinner? No problem, but you’re paying for it anyways. Frickin ridiculous.

Then, how bout my scholarship? I know, this may shock some people. Why is Barnes complaining…he gets paid to go to school. Trust me guys, I’ve heard your jokes but hear me out now. Just this past week, my scholarship laid down some laws. To give you some background, I do go to school on full scholarship and then some. I have to sign a contract as well that states that I will keep up with the GPA requirement, not get in trouble, attend all meetings, etc… Well, this year, the program has been a bit power-hungry. First of all, we sign a contract that says nothing about community service, but then we have to a mandatory six hours. Hmmm, odd. I’ll do it, but that came from nowhere. Next up, the scholarship says we must inform them when we add or drop a class. So, if I drop basketball for broomball, they need to know. WHY? Do they not trust me? I mean, the money runs out in four years so if I screw myself over and don’t get done in four years, it’s my money now. And what’s the final straw? How bout they told us this week that they don’t want us getting jobs. WHAT?! This one struck a chord with me. As they put it, we are scholars and should be focusing on our studies. God forbid we try to have a life outside of that though. A life with a little bit of responsibility and spending money. You know, something to pay cell phone bills with, car insurance, buy beverages, whatever. So if we get a job, guess who needs to know? Again, ridiculous.

The last one isn’t as dramatic but after the scholarship one, it really got to me. As we run our big program for Intramurals, I get a lot of grief for announcements not even made by me. The announcements were questionable and they were made to a crowd of about 100 people. So I understand some of their feelings. But without setting any guidelines of what was too far, it’s hard to put fault on someone for making an announcement they see as funny. I didn’t think they crossed any lines because there were no lines drawn. Not only that, but the only people who did not find the jokes funny were those who weren’t my age. Now are they out of touch? Maybe (though many times, they aren’t). This night though, it was frustrating because I was receiving fault for what other people did. And then what they did wasn’t really wrong since there was nothing set as to what was right and what was wrong.

I guess what I am trying to get at here is that adults are trying too hard to shape people my age into what they want. They are unwilling to let us learn from mistakes OR make our own decisions. They tend to be out of touch with our generation and do not consider the world from our point of view anymore. Even though, all had the point of view before. And don’t get me wrong. I love my high school, scholarship program, and my job but it can be frustrating sometimes. It’s not that I have a problem with authority. I just have a problem when the authority thinks a 20 year old college student can’t make their own decision. Or when they do, they immediately believe that it is invalid. Or get mad when the college student makes a decision they don’t like when no guidelines were set. Instead of getting mad, make it a learning opportunity.

I don’t know what the solution to this is but I do know this. I am capable of making my own decisions. I will make many good ones and plenty of bad ones. But let me make them. Support me in some so that I can see how it carries out. Do not lash out if I make a bad decision. Instead, just tell me what was wrong about it. The great thing about college is that it can kind be a bubble. Things that happen during these 4-5 great years can truly stay there for eternity. So let us make our mistakes now. That way, we don’t make them in the real world. If I mess up a class, it’s my fault. If I can’t handle a job and my classes, I can decide whether or not to drop classes or quit my job. I just wish some people would take that stick out their *** and allow people my age to live. Let us do what we do. No matter what, we are in control of our lives. We shape it into what we want to. So please, let us be. Have faith in us. We can make good decisions…if you let us.

You know the drill. Until next time, HAKUNA MATATA