Humanity and Education

I don't know what I want to be when I grow up. Do you?

Sometimes I envy those who do have it all planned out. You know that you want to be the best nurse you can be and are happy to devote hundreds, nay, thousands of hours to do so. I've struggled over the past few years as I've watched friends graduate, become teachers, nurses, get their trades and keep on achieving. I'm proud of them for doing so and honestly hope it's what makes them happy and I know for most, it is and that's awesome! I'm slowly learning to become content with what I've got, an exhilarating feeling on it's own, but to also be happy that I don't have to follow a specific path. I can finish my Diploma and not go on and go back to uni to become a Registered Nurse, and that's ok.

I love history. I love travelling. I love to learn about the amazing world we live in. We always seem to get caught up on what we're not doing rather than what we are. I had a conversation with my other half's cousin who is currently travelling the world (not doing it by halves either, currently in Tajikistan) and she spoke about how she's looking at all her friends back home who are finishing their degrees, managing businesses, having families while she was working where she could just so she can make it to her next adventure. You're always aware of what others are doing that you may have some pull towards doing but at the present time it may not be your priority so enjoy the moment you're living in.

I decided to drop a subject of my Masters this semester so that I can focus on finishing my Diploma to the best of my ability and also live a little. I now have time to work, so I can save to travel. I have time to finish off my assignments (also time to procrastinate, but we'll work on that later). I have time to put effort into my multiple interests, history, local adventures, 4 wheel driving, getting my 4WD back on the road. Time is something you can never get back so for now I'll go slow on what previous generations may have seen as the 'right' thing to do if you're planning on buying a home to raise a family. We have plans for that down the track but right now I'm young and able, I'm not wasting my time devoting my prime years to work when I can have a work/life balance. Working in Aged Care really solidifies this feeling I have. None of the resident's I care for have lectured me on making sure I build a stable base from which to lead the rest of my life from (to be fair, it wouldn't have been the female in the relationship doing that in the first place). I tell you what though, I have had a few tell me about how they always found a way to put enough together to feed, house and clothe their families. It wasn't a luxurious life, and it was sometimes very hard but it's the time you spend with each other, enjoying your life that is what counts, not the hours and hours spent at work every week.

I had a book club with some friends and I had a chat with one of the girls there. She mentioned to me how she's finished her degree and got a good job but it's not for her. She's not enjoying it. It happens. She's decided to start a course next year doing something she loves, working with horses, and seeing where it takes her. Working 9 til 5 in a job you don't like is simply not worth it for your mental health. This awareness seems to be seeping through my life in all different places and I'm thinking it would be daft to ignore it. If we could bring this acceptance I feel I've had lacking in life thus far it would make it so much easier for so many people out there questioning if what they're doing is 'good enough'. It all comes back to education, life education and what we can all share as a community.

(difficult segway into what I intended to blog about...) Recently I've been listening to a few programs on the radio about eugenics in the US in the early 20th century, pre-Nazi Germany, which also occurred in Australia. It's quite a shocking topic to learn about, how rampant it was, and accepted to a stage. It was all based around the premise of those of a lower socio-economic background or presupposed by those in more powerful positions for any reason or number of factors, that these individuals should not 'breed' to avoid further citizens with no use to offer the state. In a nutshell, a very large nutshell. Just today I watched a clip of a person of Oriental background and another of Anglo background chat while both on a jog. The Anglo asks "What kind of Asian are you?". You can find the clip here. It quite overstated but makes a fair point that previous generations have not really had to acknowledge before.

While this seems a little unrelated, it all comes back to the broad education new generations need to grow up with. The Conversation (newspaper) has suggested that genes may have very little to do with the actual academic or social success around a person's intelligence. That a person's intelligence varies greatly with the environment in which a person grows up in. Basically, it's up to us to have conversations about the lives we live, what we're really here for and how we can make humanity a little better. But I dunno, maybe that's just my own values and ethics coming into it. Should we really bother?



EDIT: Here is a link to a site a friend only shared yesterday which is aiming to develop emotional intelligence through the help of culture. They've got an extensive youtube channel that I could easily while away my day on. They describe themselves as addressing issues such as 'how to find fulfilling work, how to master the art of relationships, how to understand one's past, how to achieve calm and how better to understand and, where necessary change, the world.' They make me yearn for more opportunities to have meaningful conversations and deeper relationships.

'The School of Life is a place to step back and think intelligently about central emotional concerns. You will never be cornered by dogma, but we will direct you towards a variety of ideas from the humanities – from philosophy to literature, psychology to the visual arts – ideas that will exercise, stimulate and expand your mind. You will meet other curious, sociable and open-minded people in an atmosphere of exploration and enjoyment.'