Outcast, Ordinary, EXTRAordinary!

All I wanted to do growing up was to fit in. To be cool. To have lots of friends and have people like me. This doesn't seem out of the ordinary, does it?

The education system plays a huge role in the development of people, and I feel that it is a place that not only works to educate our youth, but also exposes them to the idea of living within a certain society. This is good, but the environment of the classroom also shapes reproduces many social norms and shapes the minds of our students in a certain way. The current system is too restrictive on the creativity and different ideas and perspectives of each individual. It takes differences and exposes them as flaws, making it hard for students to embrace their individuality and resists the idea of self-love. Often, it makes one feel like a complete outcast.

Unfortunately, I became a victim to all of these societal pressures. I always felt like an outcast. I learned to hate myself for all of the things that made me who I am. I often found myself acting one way around a certain group of people, and a completely different way around another group. I tried to force myself to be a certain way so often that I forgot what it really meant to be myself.

I didn't know this at the time, but I recently found out how harmful this was to my personal development as well as all of my relationships with my peers. What I didn't know was that other people knew I would act differently based on who I was with. They knew how badly I wanted to fit in and change myself, making it seem as if I was a fake. I wish I knew this before. As soon as high school came to a close, I wasn't exposed to as many different groups of people as before. I wasn’t able to “change” myself to please others as often. Besides, people knew that if they were to spend time with me, it would only be with the side of me that craves their acceptance, and this doesn’t benefit anyone.

There was no life-changing event that made me act in this way. Everybody responds differently to the environment that they are placed in. However, I think much of this is due to the way differences are looked down upon in the classroom. Differences, be it as small as eating rice instead of a sandwich at lunch time or listening to R&B when Soulja Boy is taking over the scene, are always put out there and make it hard for people to act in a way that doesn't conform to what is “normal” in their environment. I know that it began in my first day of school, and it continued until I realized how big of an issue it was in the recent past.

I’m happy to say that after plenty of reflection and with the help of the supportive environment I surround myself with, I have learned to love myself. All of the goods, the flaws, and in-between. It’s been beneficial to EVERYTHING! My thoughts, relationships, and even my education have benefited from this small thing that many don’t think about. It makes me think about how differently I would have grown up had I embraced this mindset at a younger age, but it also helped me realize that I can help our youth avoid the struggle of finding themselves and embracing themselves for who they are.

How do we do this? I think the ImPerfect page is a great start! Like previously mentioned, I don’t think many people reflect on this idea often. I mean, when was the last time you acted in a way that is different than how you wanted to, and didn't even ask yourself why? This is a concept that all people should think about, and this includes our teachers, mentors, and parents. Reproducing these concepts and instilling them into our youth will empower us all. Differences will be embraced in the way that they should be, as they make us who we are. People won’t feel the constant pressure to fit in, to be normal, to be ordinary. Besides, why would anybody want to be ordinary when all of us are already extraordinary on our own!