on the last class, a piece from:

FRUITY: Using fruits as metaphors.

The feeling of finishing the last day of classes is bright and creamy, like a chilled, just-ripened banana, yellow to the brim. It’s as if all is right with the world. 

*Sigh* 

I wish it really did. There are still finals. 

I’ve done some remarkable things with the help of Christ this semester.  

Such as, eating chocolate crepes at 12 AM and dancing salsa (or was it mambo?) at 2 AM. 

Let’s put my attempts at humor aside and try to focus. There are certainly takeaways from this semester, lessons that God showed me and helped me apply. 

I. Know Yourself 

Recognizing my likes and dislikes, no matter how slight, has already helped me plan and adjust. (No classes before 9 or after 4, preferably.) (Avoid essay heavy courses) 

II. The Power of Scheduling 

This semester, Google Calendar has become a very close, daily friend of mine. From event options to meetings, interviews, and oh, right, classes, I’ve stuffed many kinds of timely smidget in there.  

Set aside time for what matters most, first, prioritize it and find accountability. This is hard for the more personal goals, because it’s hard to share my aspirations with others when I doubt them myself. But, if I don’t take myself seriously, who will? 

+ SideNote but Relevant goal: I’d like to find a physical writing partner on campus, someone to meet at the student center or a coffee shop and write for an hour each morning. Will anyone be willing? Alas, I’ll see. 

III. Curve Your Expectations 

Up or down, you wonder? I say it’s up to you. 

I’m the kind of person who says that it’s better to have zero expectations, since they’re exceeded every time. 

This is nice, but impossible. There are still base expectations. Especially at university. Embedded expectations that my classmates can interact with me, brush their hair, drink water, etc. 

I think this caused me to underestimate certain people. Or more accurately, it diminished my excitement and anticipation to get to know people. I got myself accustomed to lowering expectations before the expectations could even be defined, so my energy levels were left unprepared and inappropriate to display my full self. 

Lesson learned. Instead of strictly lowering (or raising) my expectations, I’ll curve them.

By curve, I mean be ready to adapt. Raise your expectations as you learn more. Let yourself get excited. Don’t be afraid of disappointment. (It’s not exactly a new feeling anyways.)

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What’s a self protection strategy you’ve developed?